COLLEGE STATION, Texas – Head coach Karen Chisum becomes the seventh coach in NCAA Division I volleyball to reach 900 wins as Texas State volleyball team swept Northwestern State (25-21, 25-21, 25-15) Friday night at Reed Arena to conclude the Texas A&M Invitational. With the win, the Bobcats are back to .500 this season with a 5-5 record.
 
Chisum is the 5th coach across all NCAA divisions to reach 900 wins at one program (*Russ Rose – Penn State, Dave Shoji – Hawaii, Andy Banachowski – UCLA, *Chris Catanach – Tampa; * = active coach).
 
"The most important win was that one [vs. NSU] right there," said Coach Chisum. "The kids are excited, and it really is great, but now it's over and we do not have to think about it anymore. Now the big deal is No. 901 with UTSA coming to town."
 
The Bobcats dominated in their second sweep of the 2019 campaign as they hit .256 in the match and tied a season-high 49 kills. TXST also totaled 52 digs, 46 assists, five aces, and five blocks. Texas State is 39-2 all-time vs. NSU and extended its winning streak to nine matches in the series.
 
"I am proud of the team and thought we got better as the match went on," Chisum added. "We are still not playing 100 percent as strong as we could be, but it was two good wins today, especially playing back-to-back like that. We are still trying to figure out if we have a steady lineup, but the good thing about that is we got depth, and if one person is not getting it done that night, someone else will. That gives us some freedom to play other kids and continue to build their confidence."
 
Senior outside hitter Cheyenne Huskey recorded her second double-double on the day with a 16-kill 10-dig performance vs. Northwestern. Huskey also had two aces, one assist, and one block. Sophomore outside Janell Fitzgerald hit .480 with 13 kills on 25 swings and one error and led the team with three blocks. Sophomore setter Emily DeWalt directed the offense with 39 assists and had seven digs and five kills. Junior libero Brooke Johnson had a match-high 12 digs and had two assists, and sophomore Kaylie Koenen had two aces.
    
Junior outside hitter Hannah Brister was the only NSU (6-5) player to reach double figures in kills registering a total of 12 on a .200 hitting percentage. Brister also had nine digs. Senior setter Cayman Sutton and sophomore setter Skylar Besch split 24 assists evenly and Sutton had one of the team's three service aces. Senior libero Megan Lohmiller led the team with 10 digs and had two assists, and junior outside hitter Darria Williams led the team with four blocks.  
 
 Set 1
The Bobcats had a solid start as they took a 10-6 early lead to hint the Lady Demons to take a timeout. NSU rallied back to 17-15 but needed another break when TXST built the lead to 20-16. The Bobcats won the set 25-21 after scoring four of the final six points.
 
Set 2
The Lady Demons came out ready to play in the second set and jumped out to a 6-2 advantage highlighted by five unanswered points. The Bobcats cut the deficit to 6-5, but NSU built the lead back to 14-9, the largest of the set. Texas State put together a 10-5 run to tie the stanza at 19 and scored six of the next eight points to take the set, 25-21.
 
Set 3
The Bobcats and Lady Demons logged seven ties prior to Texas State's 4-0 run to take a 14-9 lead. After both clubs exchanged service errors, TXST gained a 23-14 lead. TXST's Koenen aced the Lady Demons, and after NSU's final point, Huskey sealed win No. 900 with a kill.   
 
Texas State will return home next weekend to host its annual Creeds and Crests Classic Sept. 19-21 that will feature matches vs. UTSA, George Washington and Sam Houston State.
 
Stay updated on everything Texas State volleyball by following the team on Facebook,  Twitter, and Instagram.