LEXINGTON, Ky. – The Little Rock Trojans volleyball team took its first loss of the season to the IUPUI Jaguars by a score of 3-1 (27-29, 25-18, 20-25, 24-26) in the season opener on Friday afternoon.
Little Rock began the match with a highly contested first set. The Trojans could only draw the lead out to three points at 11-8. The Jaguars clawed back to tie at 13-13, and from there, both teams remained within a point of each other until the end of the set. With IUPUI claiming set point at 24-23, Marina Avram got the kill to tie the set. With the set tied at 27-27, the Jaguars rattled off two points on an attack error and a kill to take the first set.
After a slow start in the first frame, Little Rock tied the match by winning the second set 25-18. With a 14-13 lead, the Trojans scored four straight points on two kills and two Jaguar attack errors, forcing IUPUI to take its first timeout. The Trojans' final push toward taking the second set was helped by five IUPUI attack errors. At the end of the set, IUPUI had committed 19 attack errors for the match compared to Little Rock's six.
After being down 4-1 to begin the third set, Little Rock rallied to tie the set at 5-5 on a kill and three IUPUI errors. Tied at 12-12, the Trojans scored four consecutive points on two kills and two Jaguar attack errors to take its largest lead of the set at 16-12. IUPUI then took control of the set by scoring seven straight points and taking a 19-16 lead. The Jaguars then finished the set on a 6-3 run to take the set 25-20.
Down 2-1 in the match, Little Rock got off to a hot start by taking a 9-4 lead in the fourth set. IUPUI then went on a roll by going on a 7-4 run, forcing Little Rock to call a timeout with a 12-11 lead. Tied 13-13, the Jaguars made three consecutive attack errors to give the Trojans a 16-13 lead. After a Trojan attack error, Little Rock ran the score up to 19-14 on two kills and an IUPUI attack error. The Jags then went on a 6-2 run that brought the score to 21-20. The Trojans then earned set point on a 3-1 run with kills from Megan Mathis, Carolee Dillard and Veronica Marin. With its back against a wall, IUPUI came through with five straight points to take the set and match.
Edina Selimovic ended the match with 11 kills and seven total blocks while Carolee Dillard had 11 kills and two total blocks.
Miona Milovanovic and Marina Avram each had 10 kills while Milovanovic earned four blocks (two solo and two assisted).
Megan Mathis nearly came away with a double-double with 36 assists and nine kills on 20 attempts. She led both teams with a .450 hitting percentage.
Priscila Almeida led both teams with 20 digs, while Kelsey Leech and Sydnee Martin picked up eight and seven digs, respectively.
Both squads hit .211 for the match, but Little Rock was more efficient with only 19 attack errors compared to IUPUI's 36. The Trojans also won the blocking battle by a 12-10 margin.
Little Rock will have a tougher challenge on Saturday as it faces No. 19 Michigan State at 3:30 p.m. and No. 15 Kentucky at 7:30 p.m. The Trojans' match with the Wildcats will air live on WatchESPN.
