SAN MARCOS, TX — Friday night, one volleyball program witnessed something for the first time, while the other experienced something for the 16th consecutive time.
With Texas State leading 10-7 in the fourth set of its four-set win over Trojans, water droplets broke through the ceiling of Strahan Arena as a heavy storm cell passed through the San Marcos arena at 7:41 p.m. CT. The droplets landed in the back corner of the Trojans side of the court, causing a break in the action. Something Texas State head coach
Sean Huiet said he has never experienced before.
Even with a seven-minute delay in the match, the Bobcats returned to the court and continued their march towards their 16th straight win over Troy. As a result of the match, Texas State clinched the top seed out of the Sun Belt Conference's West Division for the league's upcoming postseason conference tournament in Foley, Ala.
Despite Troy making several strong attempts to rally during the fourth set and even tying the set at 13-13 and 17-17, the Bobcats never allowed the Trojans to take the lead as Texas State reeled off eight of the next 11 points to close out the match.
Texas State earned the top seed by virtue of winning 10 of its 11 matches against the league's West Division with the Bobcats' only blemish occurring on Saturday, Oct. 22, when South Alabama won in five sets in Mobile. Saturday's match against Troy will mark the final regular season match against a West Division foe for Texas State as the Bobcats wrap up its regular season this week on the road at Coastal Carolina.
FROM HEAD COACH SEAN HUIET
"I've never had a rain delay in volleyball, so that was a crazy moment. When the lights flickered, I got really worried, because I knew a storm was rolling in. But yeah, we were talking through everything: going to the practice gym, us switching sides and putting us on the side where it was leaking, but we didn't want to wait 30 minutes, which was the end all. I'm glad we didn't have to do that and were able to finish the match."
FROM SETTER EMILY DEWALT
"I think just trying to stay focused (during the delay) was the hardest thing, obviously not knowing what was going to happen. Coming out, we lost some points there, but we were just trying to stay focused and stay warm."
STAT LEADERS
SCORES BY SET
- 1st | Texas State 25, Troy 19
- 2nd | Troy 25, Texas State 21
- 3rd | Texas State 25, Troy 19
- 4th | Texas State 25, Troy 20
MATCH NOTES
- With her 12-dig performance Friday night, Texas State libero Jacqueline Lee has recorded double-figure digs in nine of her last 10 matches for head coach Sean Huiet. During the 10-match span, Lee has totaled 158 digs, highlighted by a 55-dig, two-match outing at South Alabama in late October.
- By finishing the match with a team-leading 14 kills, Friday night's match marked the first time Jada Gardner has led the Bobcats in kills since Texas State beat ULM in four sets in Monroe, La., on Sept. 23, 2022.
- Friday night's action marked the 14th time this season Emily DeWalt has surpassed 40-or-more assists in a single match this season. Of those 14 occasions, 10 have happened against conference opponents.
- Texas State rallied from a six-point deficit — 9-3 — during the early portion of the first set to take the first set by six points at 25-19. The set win extended the Bobcats' streak of winning 34 of the last 37 sets against the Trojans. With the match's outcome, that streak now sits at 36 of 40 dating back to a five-set match on Sept. 27, 2014.
- With the win, third-year head coach Sean Huiet has now won his 70th career match as the head coach of the Texas State volleyball program.
- Friday night's match marked the first four-set win over Troy at Strahan Arena for Texas State since Oct. 18, 2013, when the two programs met for the first time as Sun Belt foes.
UP NEXT
- Texas State (19-6, 11-2) and Troy (16-9, 10-3) will wrap up its two-match series at 2 p.m. CT on Saturday, Nov. 5. The match will mark the final volleyball match inside Strahan Arena for nine Bobcat student-athletes: Emily Smylie, Jada Gardner, Tessa Marshall, Jillian Slaughter, Courtney Heiser, Janell Fitzgerald, Emily DeWalt, Lauren Teske and Kayla Tello.
FOLLOW US
- For the latest information on the team, follow @TexasStateVball on Twitter, @TxStateVolleyball on Instagram and Facebook. General athletic news can also be at @TxStateBobcats on Twitter, Instagram and Facebook.
