Texas Southern overwhelms Mississippi Valley State in three sets

ITTA BENA, Miss. – The Texas Southern Lady Tigers ran their winning streak to five matches with a quick, three-set sweep Friday at Mississippi Valley State.
 
Scores of the match were 25-11, 25-10, and 25-12.
 
Texas Southern (7-7) improved to 3-0 in Southwestern Athletic Conference play with the win. The Lady Tigers recorded 10 blocks in the match as they held Valley to a negative-.134 hitting percentage (15 kills and 28 errors on 97 attempts).
 
The Devilettes (1-9) fell to 0-2 in SWAC play.
 
Kali Fluke knocked down a match-high eight kills and hit .400 to lead the Lady Tigers to victory. Michaela Powell hit a match-high .600, knocking down seven kills on 10 attempts with one error.
 
Asia Howard handed out 11 assists for TSU, while Ellena Torres added eight assists. Allison Woods led the defensive effort with 10 digs for the Lady Tigers, while Brianna McKay tallied eight digs, followed by Fluke and Torres with six digs apiece.
 
Fluke, Nicole Robinson, Ashlynn Caldwell, and Nia Stone all participated in three successful blocks for the Lady Tigers.
 
After ceding the opening point of the match, the Lady Tigers quickly seized control with five unanswered points. The home side stayed within striking distance until late in the set, when TSU claimed victory by winning 11 of the last 13 points.
 
The visitors continue their dominance in set two as the Lady Tigers jumped out to an early 10-1 lead. TSU later claimed its first double-digit lead of the set with a 5-0 run that stretched its lead to 18-5.
 
Valley opened the third set with a 3-1 lead, but TSU regained control by scoring the next four points. The third set was close, with Valley trailing only 16-12 at one point, but the Lady Tigers proceeded to score nine unanswered points to take the set and sweep the match.
 
The Lady Tigers passed the ball exceptionally well on Friday, and distributed the ball equally amongst the team; a total of 10 players recorded assists for TSU in the match.
 
Alexis Austin chipped in six kills for TSU, while Stone added five kills. Breyanna York tallied five assists, and Howard, Robinson, and Cassidy Jannson registered four digs apiece.
 
The Lady Tigers conclude their weekend trip to the Mississippi with a match at Jackson State on Saturday. First serve is scheduled for 4 p.m.