Tulane University
7-8,5-3AAC
Wichita State
8-5,3-5AAC
Volleyball Earns Five-Set Win Over Wichita State Saturday
Mar 13, 2021 | Women's Volleyball
NEW ORLEANS — The Tulane volleyball team (7-8, 5-3 AAC) earned a five-set victory (25-23, 18-25, 18-25, 25-22, 15-7) over Wichita State (8-5, 3-5 AAC) on Saturday inside the Avron B. Fogelman Arena in the Devlin Fieldhouse, going 2-0 against the Shockers in the Green Wave's last home series of the season.
"This was one of the most satisfying weekends as a coach," head coach Jim Barnes said. "Our team played incredibly tough and we pulled together during every challenge. Our seniors, Lexie [Douglas], Nicole [Levine] and Mia [Primavera] have done so much for our program. It was great to honor them today."
Senior outside hitter Lexie Douglas and junior middle hitter Kayla Dinkins helped pave the way for the Olive and Blue in the win, each totaling 15 kills while hitting .220 and .379, respectively.Â
Notching her second consecutive double-double at home was freshman outside hitter Mackenzie Martin, who recorded 12 kills and 13 digs in five sets of action. Freshman middle hitter Anna Davis also added double-digit kills, totaling 11 while hitting .303.
Junior setter Taylor Henigsman helped lead Tulane's offense in the match, totaling 46 assists and 12 digs. Freshman libero Sophia Ervanian added 17 digs, while senior defensive specialist Mia Primavera totaled 12 and sophomore defensive specialist Jillian Dits had 11.
Wichita State took the lead early in the match as a 4-0 run put the Shockers ahead 7-5 before Tulane came back to tie it at 10-10. A 5-1 run, with kills from Douglas and Martin, put the Green Wave ahead by three at 17-14 before a 4-0 Olive and Blue run followed it up to make it a five-point game at 21-16. The Shockers came back to tie the match at 23-23, but the Green Wave stayed ahead to finish it out and take the first set, 25-23.
The second set was a back-and-forth battle to start, with the team's being tied at 11-11, before a 7-0 run from the Shockers put the visiting team on top 19-12. A 5-1 Green Wave run closed the gap to three, at 17-20, but four straight points from WSU closed it out at 25-18, evening the match at 1-1.
Wichita State jumped out to a 7-2 lead in the third set, ultimately staying ahead to win with a 25-18 score and take a 2-1 match lead. Two quick kills from Douglas and one from Dinkins closed the gap to three but the Shockers held onto their lead and closed it out with a kill at set point.
Tulane broke away from a 7-7 tie in the fourth set, going on a 5-0 run to take the lead at 12-7. Wichita State came within one at 21-20, forcing a Tulane timeout, but the Green Wave stayed on top as a kill from Douglas put the team at set point and a Shockers attacking error finished it out to force a fifth set with both teams tied at 2-2.
A 4-0 run in the final set sent Tulane rolling to start as the Green Wave took a 6-3 lead and forced a Shockers timeout. The Olive and Blue then went on a 6-2 run to close out the match, solidifying the five-set win with a 15-7 score in the fifth.
Next up, Tulane heads to Tampa, Florida, to take on USF on Friday and Saturday, with both matches beginning at 10 a.m.
Follow Tulane volleyball on social media at @GreenWaveVB on Twitter, Instagram and Facebook. Follow Tulane Athletics on Twitter, Facebook, Instagram.
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