Nov. 17, 2007

Final Stats

SAN ANTONIO - AJ Watlington set a career high with 15 kills in a match that saw 49 ties and 17 lead changes as No. 5 Texas State knocked off No. 1 Lamar 3-1 (30-27, 30-27, 28-30, 30-23) on Saturday to advance to the 2007 Southland Conference Tournament Championship Match.

The `Cats (20-11) now get a chance to avenge a pair of regular season losses to No. 2 Stephen F. Austin (27-7), who swept No. 6 Northwestern State in the other semifinal match.

Lamar (25-9) pulled out to an early 11-7 lead in game one before a 5-1 Bobcat rally tied it at 12-12. The two teams would stay within three points of each other the rest of the game, but Jones took over near the end to lead Texas State to the 30-27 win. Jones tallied two of the final three Bobcat kills and served an ace that put the `Cats at game point before they sealed the win on a Lamar error.

Game two started with a 5-0 Texas State run, but the lead quickly shrank to one and started another back-and-forth game that featured 10 ties and four lead changes. Lamar managed to claim a two point edge at 22-20 and held its advantage until Watlington took over with consecutive kills that tied the game at 26-26. Another kill by the freshman gave Texas State a 28-27 lead, as the 'Cats scored the final three points of the stanza to hold a 2-0 match lead.

The Bobcats looked for the sweep out of the break but encountered another tough game with 17 ties and six lead changes in it. Holding a 19-15 lead, Texas State gave up a 6-1 rally to Lamar as the Lady Cardinals staked a 21-20 lead. The two teams then traded points until it was tied at 28-28, but Genevieve Gladle's ace gave Lamar a 30-28 win to stay alive.

Trying to force a fifth and deciding game, Lamar staked a 9-5 lead in game four before the Bobcats fought back to tie the game before using a 7-2 run to take a 22-17 lead. The Lady Cardinals trimmed it to 23-21 but would get no closer as Watlington slammed home the match-winner for a 30-23 win.

Watlington was one of four Bobcats in double figures in kills, with Lawrencia Brown adding 14, Melinda Cave 12 and Jessica Weynand 11. Texas State also spread the ball around on defense with five players with at least 12 digs. Shelbi Irvin led the `Cats with 16 while Brown and Weynand each had 15 and Kacey Wimpy and Brittany Collins had 12 digs. Irvin and Collins also combined for 57 assists, with Collins leading the way with 34 while Irvin added 23.

Texas State also set a pair of season highs in the match with 69 kills and 17 team blocks against the regular season champion Lady Cardinals (25-9).

Courtney Mitchel led Lamar with 19 kills while Molli Abel added 11. Four Lamar players tallied at least 10 digs, led by Andrea Hamilton's 16.

Live stats for Sunday's championship match will be available via host UTSA's website at goutsa.com. The Southland Conference will also provide free live streaming video via the conference's new Southland.tv website.