HUNTSVILLE – The Sam Houston volleyball team put a halt to a 9-match losing streak and sent shockwaves throughout the WAC on Saturday, upending Stephen F. Austin in five sets at Bernard G. Johnson Coliseum.
The Kats (4-12, 1-1 WAC) had opened up WAC play with a 5-set loss at Abilene Christian on Thursday night, but did not have a carryover in their first match at home since August 30. Sam Houston took each of the first two sets from the Ladyjacks (13-2, 1-1 WAC) and then used a 7-0 run to open up the fifth set to help propel to the finish line.
It marked the third straight win for SHSU over SFA after getting two wins in the rivalry series last year, but more importantly got the Kats back in the win column for the first time since a win at A&M-Corpus Christi on September 2.
The Kats went to five sets for the fourth time in their last five matches and got huge offensive matches from both
Catherine Krieger as the pair combined for 37 of Sam Houston's 62 kills in the match. Krieger accounted for 20 of those kills, tying her career high which she set as a freshman in 2019, and did it efficiently with just one error on 48 attacks.
Fielder, meanwhile, set a new career best of her own with 17 kills on 57 tries, along with 13 digs. Setter
Analise Lucio joined her with a double-double as well, finishing with a team-best 29 assists and 17 digs.
But it was libero
Hannah Baker who led the defense with 38 digs, while fellow Deer Park native
McKenzie Morvant led the Kats with five blocks.
The Kats trailed 19-16 late in Set 1 before closing strong with a 9-3 run to take an early 1-0 lead. Three straight kills from Krieger broke an 18-18 tie in Set 2 and two more from her in the final stretch gave her eight for the set and got the Kats to the locker room with a 2-0 lead.
But the Ladyjacks, who entered with a 13-1 overall record, responded in both Sets 3 and 4 to force a decisive fifth set. But Sam Houston wasted no time flexing on SFA behind a kill and two aces from Fielder, staking the Kats to a 7-0 lead in the short-scored set.
That lead was too much to overcome for the Ladyjacks who were held to -.105 hitting in the final set.
The Kats will look to build on Saturday's big win with a pair of matches at Seattle U and Utah Valley this week, beginning Thursday night at the Redhawk Center.
