CANYON, TEXAS -- Adams State closed out the BritKare Lady Buff Classic at West Texas A&M with a split of two matches Sept. 4.
The University of Arkansas-Fort Smith downed the Grizzlies 23-25, 25-20, 26-24, 26-24 in the day;s opening match.
Sai Collins had 16 kills for the Grizzlies and a hitting percentage of .231.
Shannon Mulkey added nine kills and a hitting percentage of an even .200, while Chasey Bloch had eight kills and a team-high hitting percentage of .412.
The Lions' Reagan Macha had 13 kills in 39 chances, Paola Fragalle added 12 kills, and Hannah Holland had nine kills and a hitting percentage of .412.
ASU beat the University of Texas-Permian Basin 25-17, 25-21, 18-25, 26-24 for the team's first win of the season. Mulkey compiled a season-high 16 kills in 29 chances. With no hitting errors, her hitting percentage was .552. Collins was next in line with 13 kills.
Riley Rabedeaux finished with 10 kills. Aquincia Strambler had 17 kills for Texas Permian Basin. Taure Magee finished with 12 kills and a hitting percentage of .364 for the Falcons.
As a team, Adams State finished with 57 kills and a hitting percentage of .301, the best of the young season.
ASU vs, University of Arkansas-Fort Smith
Adams State's biggest lead in the opening set was four points. Three Collins' kills were part of the Grizzlies' early success. ASU held a three-point advantage at 19-16 after Bloch took a pass from
Bailey Schlosser and put one down. But the Lions mounted a rally. Macha had three kills, and Arkansas-Fort Smith took advantage of some hitting errors to forge a 22-20 lead. Adams State had the last rally that eventually took the set. Riley Rabedeux had a pair of kills, and Mulkey added one. That offense, plus consecutive attack errors, gave the Grizzlies the set.
The Lions got off to a strong start in the second set by scoring 10 of the first 16 points. Adams State rallied with an 8-2 run of their own. Rabedeaux had a couple of kills in the surge. Collins and Blach added one each. Collins' kill gave the Grizzlies their last lead at 18-17. The Lions scored 10 of the last 14 points in the set, thanks to three of Macha's kills and consecutive kills from Holland.
The Grizzlies took their turn at a strong showing when the third set opened. ASU used two of Rabedeaux's kills to open up a 16-11 lead. She and Collins added kills later in the set to put the Grizzlies up 20-14. The Lions got three aces among their last 11 points of the set. Two came from Chloe Price, and one came from Paola Fragalle. Mulkey's kill gave the Grizzlies a 24-23 lead, but three straight errors gave the Lions the third set.
The beginning of the fourth set belonged to the Grizzlies as well. Alexandra MacKaskill put one down to give ASU a 19-13 lead. Rabedeaux's kill gave ASU a 23029 lead, but the Lions finished off a 13-5 run to win the match. Price contributed three aces during the decisive surge
ASU vs. Texas Permian Basin
Adams State didn't have a lot of first-set issues against the Falcons. Eight Texas Permian errors made up a bit more than of the Grizzlies' first 15 points. Mulkey added five kills to the cause while Rabedeauz added three. As a team, Adams State's hitting percentage was .344 (13 kills, two errors in 32 chances). MacKaskill's ace closed out the set.
Two of Collins' kills and a couple of Falcons' mistakes gave the Grizzlies the lead for good in the second set, though the Falcons hung close. Offense at the net from Rabedeaux and Mulkey down the stretch kept Texas Permian Basin at bay. Two unforced errors closed out the set for the Grizzlies. Collins had four kills in the set, while Muilkey and MacAskill added three.
The Falcons rallied for a win in the third set. They jumped out to an 18-7 lead on the strength of Strambler's three kills and two more from Taurie McGee. Mulkey had a couple of kills, and Blach added one as the set wound down, but it wasn't enough to offset Erika Lozano's ace and a couple of miscues on the part of the Grizzlies.
The fourth set featured 11 ties and five lead changes. The Lions enjoyed a 15-10 lead after a pair of service aces from Daylee Doggett and a service ace from Isela Murillo. ASU mounted a rally of its own and took its first lead at 22-21 after an attack error. Mulkey put on down to give ASC a 23-22 lead, but the Falcons' Analisa Lucio answered with two kills of her own to give her team a 24-23 lead.
After an Adams State timeout, the Grizzlies took the lead for good on an attack error and won the match as Collins took a set from Schlosser and put one down.
Adams State's home opener is at 5 p.m. Tuesday, Sept. 7, against Angelo State University. The Grizzlies head back out on the road for a match in Hays, Kansas, against Cameron University.
