Box Score 1 |
Box Score 2 NORMAN, Okla. – After dropping their first match of the day against Cal State Northridge 3-0 (25-17, 25-16, 25-19), UALR got back on track Friday evening by sweeping Lamar in three sets (25-23, 25-21, 25-23) and gave head coach Van Compton her 450th career win.
Because of her effort during the tournament, junior Sonja Milanovic was named to the Oklahoma Nike Invitational All-Tournament Team. Over the three-match stretch, Milanovic tallied 30 kills and 21 digs.
Lamar came into Friday night's match against UALR with a 0-7 record after being swept by Portland State earlier in the day. Lamar kept the fight close throughout the match, but UALR held tough and went the distance.
A neck and neck first set started the match off in competitive fashion. The two squads were never more than two points apart throughout the set, and neither would rally for more than three points at a time. UALR's only three-point rally came at the end of the set as the Trojans were down 22-23. With two kills and a ball handling error by Lamar, UALR was able to pull off a tight, first-set win. Junior Edina Selimovic was the Trojans' top scorer in the set with four kills and added two blocks. Junior Katarina Bursac helped the Trojans' on both sides of the ball by contributing 12 assists and three blocks.
The second set started out just like the first as each team traded blows. With UALR up 13-9, Lamar made a run by scoring six straight points until a service error ended the run. But the Cardinals' lead didn't last long as the Trojans went on a 12-6 run to put away the second set.
The final set was as close as the first as UALR trailed by no more than three points until it was able to tie the set at 13. From there, the Trojans and Cardinals traded the lead until again tying the set at 18. With UALR having an 18-17 lead, Lamar was able to find some momentum by going on a four point scoring run. UALR answered right back by going on a 7-2 run to capture the set and match.
The Trojans were led on offense by career kills leader Edina Begic, who turned in a near double-double with a 16 kills and seven digs while also hitting a smooth .483. Senior Adisa Hodzic was also able to contribute by racking up seven kills of her own. After tallying 12 assists in the first set, Bursac ended the contest with a career-high 34 assists and three blocks.
UALR also looked strong on defense with 41 digs and 14 blocks. Senior Capri Rino and Milanovic had 11 and 10 digs, respectively. Milanovic added six kills and two blocks. Redshirt sophomore Carolee Dillard racked up a team-high four blocks to go along with four kills.
The other match of the day did not go as well for the Trojans. UALR started the match strong by getting a 6-3 lead early in the first set. Four of the six points came off of Cal State Northridge errors. The match then became a back-and-forth affair as the two squads tied the set at 12. CSUN would then go on a 12-5 run to clinch the first set. The Matadors' Casey Hinger would rack up four kills during the run and ended the first set with five. Hinger would end the match with 13 kills and an outstanding .857 hitting percentage.
CSUN carried over the momentum from the first set to start the second frame with a 4-1 lead with all four points coming off of UALR attack errors. The set only went downhill from there as the Matadors stretched their lead to 10 points at 20-10. UALR tried its best but could only bring the deficit back down to seven before CSUN took the set.
The final set was a repeat of the previous two. The Matadors started the set off on a 17-7 run and at one point scored five straight points. Down 23-12, UALR showed a spark of life by racking up five straight points and forcing CSUN to take a timeout. After the timeout, the Matadors would score a point, only to be answered with 2 more Trojan points. Bringing an 11-point deficit back down to five, UALR showed up just late, as Cal State Northridge took the set and match on a service error.
Milanovic had the best match for the Trojans by tallying a match-leading 14 kills and a team-high .345 hitting percentage. The other noteworthy offensive performance came from Bursac, who helped the Trojans' cause with 21 assists. Bursac also contributed on defense by racking up seven digs and three blocks.
UALR returns to action on Wednesday (Sept. 17) to begin Sun Belt play against ULM in its first home game of the season at Jack Stephens Center.
