Arkansas volleyball closed out its first road trip with another sweep and finished the weekend in Colorado 3-0 without dropping a single set.
The Razorbacks defeated the Florida Gulf Coast Eagles 25-14, 25-17 and 25-23 on Saturday. Senior Maggie Cartwright led the offense with 11 kills on 27 attempts for a .333 hitting percentage and also had four digs.
Senior outside hitter Jill Gillen made history with her first kill of the day, which put her into the top 10 in Arkansas program history for career kills. She finished the match with nine, which brings her current total to 1,276, and she is the first addition to the career top 10 kills list in 10 seasons. Gillen also posted a team-high four service aces on the day and had eight digs.
Sophomore setter Hannah Hogue tallied a double-double with 19 assists and 13 digs, both team highs, and also contributed three aces to Arkansas’ 12 as a team.
Set 1
The Hogs quickly got a two-point lead to start the match and went on a three-point run shortly after, highlighted by two aces from Courtney Jackson, for a 6-2 advantage. Arkansas stayed sharp at the service line and with another pair of aces from Gillen and a kill from Tatum Shipes, went up 10-6. FGCU called time and was able to cut the Arkansas lead to as little as two, but the Hogs answered with back-to-back Gillen kills and an ace from junior Taylor Head for a 17-10 advantage. The Eagles got three back after a timeout, but the Razorbacks were the first to 20 off a Shipes kill. FGCU responded with a point, but Arkansas added five, including a Gillen ace to end it 25-14 for the Hogs.
Set 2
Arkansas began the second set with a big 6-1 run, which included Jackson’s third ace of the day, and despite FGCU’s best efforts, the Hogs held them to no more than two points at a time. The Hogs were the first to 15 off a Shipes kill and rolled from there. The Hogs rattled off a five-point run to reach 20, which featured three FGCU errors, a kill from Cartwright and an ace from Hogue, which sent the Hogs to set point. The Eagles battled and put up four of their own, but a kill from Cartwright finished it off, 25-17 in favor of Arkansas.
Set 3
The Eagles came the closest to catching the Hogs all day in the third set and held an 8-5 lead early. Arkansas then scored four of the next five points on a pair of kills from Cartwright and one each from Head and Shipes, which tied the score at 9-9. The Hogs grew the lead to five at 17-12 with another kill from Shipes, but FGCU put the pressure on from there. The Eagles put together three straight points and took the lead at 21-20, which sent Arkansas to a timeout. The Hogs regrouped and thanks to a kill and ace from Head and a FGCU error, regained the lead at 23-22. The Eagles huddled and tied it up once more, but Gillen’s ninth kill of the day brought set and match point for the Hogs. A block by Gillen and Shipes sealed a close 25-23 set victory for Arkansas’ third match sweep in as many days.
Next Up
Arkansas welcomes Little Rock, Florida International and Colorado to Barnhill Arena next weekend for the Arkansas Invitational. The Hogs take on UALR on Friday, Sept. 9 at 10 a.m. and FIU at 7:30 p.m., and resume action with Colorado on Sunday, Sept. 11 at 1 p.m. Tickets are available now and can be purchased online, by phone or in person.
More Information
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