Box Score
BEAUMONT, Texas – Four players finished with at least 10 kills and Sam Houston State took the final two sets after the halftime break to pick up a 3-1 (25-18, 22-25, 25-23, 25-18) win over Lamar on Saturday afternoon at McDonald Gym.
Brooke White finished with a match-high 16 kills in helping the Kats (12-12, 6-5 SLC) move back above .500 in Southland Conference play. Sam Houston's offense was firing on all cylinders against the Cardinals (5-19, 5-7 SLC), hitting .291 for the match with 10.0 team blocks.
SET 1
The Kats hit .333 with 17 digs and three blocks, as Sam Houston went on a 7-0 run to close out a 25-18 win in the opening set. Amanda Gooch led the way with seven kills with White right behind her with six and Sarah Sherman adding four more as Sam Houston out-killed the Cardinals 18-11 in the frame.
SET 2
Lamar squared it up in the second set with three players registering four kills. Sam Houston hit just .152 in the frame, its lowest output for the match, despite four kills from White and a pair of blocks from Sherman and Taylor Cunningham.
SET 3
In the third set, the Kats had to go the full distance, but responded to retake a 2-1 lead. They worked their way to a set-point try and finished it off with a block from Sherman and Amanda Gooch, the third Bearkat block of the set. Setter Michelle Griffith led the Kats to .282 hitting in the set, finding Cunningham and Gooch for four scores apiece while Claire Kilpatrick picked up eight of her 21 digs on the match in the set.
SET 4
Sam Houston turned to its outside hitters to close things out in the fourth set with White and Jordyn Vaughn carrying the load with five kills apiece. The Kats just misfired three times on 30 swings, hitting .400 in the set while adding five service aces. Sam Houston stretched its lead to 16-9 midway through the set and used a kill from Sherman and White's third ace of the set to finish off the match.
PLAYERS OF THE MATCH
White led all players with 16 kills for the match, scoring at least 10 kills for the 10th straight match. She hit .263 for the afternoon and added six service aces. Griffith finished with 47 assists while Kilpatrick kept alive 21 digs. Vaughn finished with her eighth double-double of the season with 12 kills and 11 digs, while Sherman added 10 kills and six blocks.
KEY STATS
The Bearkats owned the service line against the Cardinals, scoring nine service aces to just one by Lamar. Sam Houston also held a slight edge in kills (58-56), digs (62-58) and blocks (10.0-9.0).
UP NEXT
Sam Houston will have a busy week upcoming with three home matches in five days beginning Tuesday when the Kats host Stephen F. Austin. They will then welcome Southeastern Louisiana to town on Thursday and conclude the week with a Saturday matinee against New Orleans.
