Nov. 19, 2005

Box Score

ARLINGTON - Elizabeth Nwoke torched 18 kills and Amy Ramirez posted 20 digs in Texas State's 3-0 (30-22, 33-31, 30-18) win over Stephen F. Austin in the semifinals of the Southland Conference volleyball tournament.

With the win, Texas State (16-14) snapped SFA's 21-match winning streak and also handed the Ladyjacks' their first three-game loss of the season.

Stephen F. Austin (28-3) raced out with game one's first two points, but Brittany Prewit brought the `Cats back into the game quickly, posting a kill and an ace to tie the game at 2-2. The score evened two more times, and after SFA knotted the score at 5-5, Texas State went on an 8-2 run to take a 13-7 lead.

SFA countered with three straight points to get within three at 13-10, but Texas State again went on the attack, using a 7-5 clip to take a 20-15 lead. The Bobcats maintained the five-point lead, posting a point on a Karry Griffin kill to go up 26-19, forcing a Ladyjack time out.

Out of the break, Texas State closed the game by outscoring SFA 4-3, including three points from Prewit to win 30-22 and take a 1-0 advantage in the match.

The Bobcats caught fire to open game two, rolling off four consecutive points to begin the game, but SFA roared back, going on a 10-2 run to lead 10-6. The SFA rally forced a Texas State time out, and the Bobcats came out of the break with a 6-1 rally to regain the lead at 12-11.

After a Ladyjack time out, the `Jacks tied the game at 12-12, but the Bobcats rattled off three-in-a-row to claim a 15-12 advantage.

SFA battled back, getting to within one six more times, and the Ladyjacks were finally able to tie the game at 29-29 with a kill that ripped game point from the hands of the `Cats.

An SFA kill made the score 30-29, but the ensuing SFA serve went long and the game tied at 30-30.

Texas State grabbed a point to go up 31-30, but SFA again nailed a clutch kill to tie the game at 31-31. The Ladyjacks were unable to steal momentum, however, making a pair of critical errors at the game's end to finish at 33-31, handing the Bobcats a 2-0 lead in the match.

The Bobcats shut the door on the contest, winning game three 30-18 and handing the Ladyjacks their first three-game loss of the year.

Texas State fired off two points to open the game, but a 4-1 SFA run quickly erased the Bobcat lead and put the Ladyjacks on top 4-3. The teams traded scores to four ties, but with the score knotted at 7-7, the `Cats went on a 5-1 run to take a 12-8 lead, forcing an SFA time out.

Out of the break, SFA got the first score, but Texas State rolled off the next four, pushing the lead to 16-9 and capping the run at 9-2 for the seven-point lead.

The Ladyjacks got the next two points to trail 16-11, but again Texas State went on a run, this time outscoring SFA 4-0 to take a 20-11 lead in the game.

Down nine, SFA attempted to make a last-minute run, outscoring the Bobcats 3-1 and forcing a Texas State time out at 21-14. The Ladyjacks continued the run after the stoppage in play, cutting the lead to six at 22-16 and again at 23-17, but a block by Griffin sparked a 7-1 run that slammed the door on the match and advanced the Bobcats into the SLC finals.

Nwoke's 18 digs led the charge for the Bobcats, while Brown was the only other Bobcat in double digits with 13 kills in the match. Ramirez led the defense with 20 digs and was joined in double digits by a pair of Bobcat defenders, as Prewit posted 11 digs and Brown capped her double-double with 14.

The win moves Texas State in to the Southland Conference title match against Texas-San Antonio, who knocked off Sam Houston State in the day's first semifinal contest. Start time for the Bobcats and Roadrunners is slated for 4 p.m. Sunday.