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Lady Buffs Win Fifth-Straight LSC Title With Sweep Over Central Oklahoma
Nov. 15, 2003
Rebuilding year? Did somebody say rebuilding year? The West Texas A&M University volleyball team proved to the Lone Star Conference that they were reloading, not rebuilding, as the Lady Buffs swept Central Oklahoma, 3-0 (30-23, 30-28, 30-25), to win their fifth-straight LSC Title Saturday night at The Box.
Senior setter Kendra Morgan became the 12th player in NCAA-II history with 6,000 career assists, as she dished out 47 on the night, giving her 6,035 for her career. Morgan was three kills short of her seventh triple double, as she finished with seven kills and 10 digs. She was also named the LSC Tournament MVP.
Freshmen outside hitters led the Lady Buffs' arsenal Saturday night in front of a season-high 819 fans in The Box. Ambra Clark pounded out a match-high 16 kills, while Rachel Altman tallied 12 kills (.455 hitting percentage). Jessica Scherr logged a team-high 14 digs.
Senior libero Kacie Hyatt added 11 digs, while freshman middle blocker Megan Spivey registered a match-high five blocks for the Lady Buffs, who improve to 29-7 on the year and advance to the NCAA-II Regionals for the 10th-straight season.
Clark and Hyatt joined Morgan on the LSC All-Tournament Team.
Central Oklahoma, which ends its season at 23-7 overall, was led by Tori Walker's 13 kills and 16 digs, in her return to The Box, as she played for WTAMU as a freshman in 2000, before transferring to UCO. Stacy Meek dished out 37 assists, and moved into the top 20 in NCAA-II career assists.
Meek and Walker were also named to the All-Tournament Team.
The Lady Buffs exploded to an 8-4 lead on a kill from Morgan, before the Bronchos closed to tie it a 9-9.
WTAMU opened a 17-12 lead after a UCO attack sailed out of bounds.
Morgan registered career assist number 6,000 on a dish to Clark, who put the ball away to give the Lady Buffs a 21-15 lead.
The lead stretched to 26-18 after Spivey and Scherr teamed for a block and Scherr later ended the game with a kill, 30-23.
UCO battled back in game two, taking an early lead at 6-4. The Bronchos opened a 14-12 lead on a kill from Ashley Hemphill, who posted 10 kills on the night.
WTAMU fought back and eventually took a 23-21 on another tandem block from Spivey and Scherr, forcing a time-out by UCO.
Spivey doubled up with a teammate two blocks in a row, the first with Clark, the second with Morgan, to give the Lady Buffs a 28-24 lead.
WTAMU scored the next point after UCO hit it into the net, but the Bronchos rallied back, closing to 29-28 on a kill by Rachel MacElvaine, forcing a Lady Buffs' time-out.
Clark responded with a kill to end the game at 30-28.
The Lady Buffs opened a 4-0 lead in the third game, before the Bronchos bucked back to tie it at 10-all. After a long rally which included sprawling digs by Morgan and Scherr, ending with a kill from Altman down the line.
WTAMU opened a 21-18 lead on an ace by Morgan, but UCO came back and tied it at 24-24.
After a kill by Morgan and an errant Broncho attack, the Lady Buffs had a 26-24 lead and UCO called time-out.
The Bronchos came out of the huddle and promptly hit the ball out of bounds twice before a kill from Clark gavem the Lady Buffs Championship Point at 29-24. However, WTAMU prolonged the celebration for a moment, hitting the ball out of bounds.
Morgan and Spivey teamed on a block to end the game and the match, 30-25, and set off the jubilation.
It was the Lady Buffs' fifth-straight conference championship and eighth in the last nine years. Overall, WTAMU has won 11 LSC titles, and they have all come in streaks, as they won three straight from 1988-1990 and again from 1995-'97, before the current streak of five since 1999. It was the second-straight year that the Lady Buffs defeated the Bronchos in the title match, as WTAMU did it last season on UCO's home court.
WTAMU advances to the NCAA-II Regionals for the 10th-straight season and 13 of the last 14 years. The site and the seedings will be announced either Sunday night or Monday morning. Stay tuned to www.gobuffsgo.com for more information.
LSC All-Tournament Team
Kendra Morgan, SR, S, WTAMU - MVP
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