TCU Volleyball Off To Best Start In School History, Tops Villanova 3-1
The Horned Frogs made it 3-for-3 in tournament titles as they captured the Villanova Classic crown with a 3-1 (25-21, 25-16, 16-25, 25-21) victory over the host Wildcats. The 9-0 start matches the 2008 squad for the best in school history.
Kristen Hester was named tournament MVP, while Sarah Joeckel and Megan Munce earned all-tournament accolades.
Jordan Raines posted her second double-double of the day with 12 kills and 15 digs to go along with three blocks. Hester paced the team with 16 kills and had three blocks. Munce dished out 41 assists and nine digs. Yvonne Igodan punched down nine kills from the middle and Stephanie Holland pitched in with eight. Joeckel led four players in double digit digs with 28. Meghan Horio tallied 18 digs and Sloane Sunstrum had14.
The Horned Frogs set the tone for the first set with a dominating 13-6 run to open the match. Sunstrum, Holland, Hester and Igodan knocked down kills and the Wildcats committed seven errors to help the Frogs take control of the match. Munce capped the furious opening rally with a kill on an overpass by the Wildcats.
After a Villanova timeout, the Wildcats went on a 10-5 run to get back in the set, trailing by two, 18-16, but the Frogs had an answer on kills from Igodan and Holland. Three more Wildcat errors gave the Frogs breathing room at 23-19 and Hester nailed down the 25-21 set one victory.
Another big rally to open the second set put the Frogs on pace to take a 2-0 match lead. Hester came alive in the middle with three kills and Raines knocked down a pair to give the Frogs an 8-3 lead. Following a Nova timeout, the Frogs put together a devastating 5-0 run that was aided by kills from Igodan, Hester and Sunstrum.
TCU continued to roll after another Villanova timeout as Sunstrum blasted a pair of kills to give the Frogs a 17-8 lead. The Frogs fought through a 5-1 run to get back on track. Raines broke the Wildcats’ momentum with a kill, then teamed with Igodan on a loud block in the middle to make it 22-14. Munce and Igodan finished off the 25-16 set two win.
The Wildcats led wire-to-wire in the third set as they battled to get back in the match. Clinging to an 11-10 lead, the Wildcats went on a 9-4 run that would give them a 20-14 lead. TCU never recovered from the run as it dropped the third set 25-16.
In the fourth set, the Wildcats took the early lead as they fought to a 13-9 lead. TCU settled down and put together a 7-2 run to take a 16-15 lead. Hester was big in the run with three kills and an ace. Emily Kirby and Igodan got a big block and Igodan blasted a kill to get the Frogs back in the set.
The fight was on as the teams battled to a 20-all tie, but from there it was all TCU. Hester showed her court sense with a pair of tips to the sideline to give the Frogs a 22-20 lead. Two more kills from Hester gave the Frogs match point and Raines finished off the 25-21 set four win.
TCU improves to 9-0 on the season. The Frogs will be back in action on Tuesday night when they host Baylor at the University Rec Center. Match time is set for 6:30 p.m.
