CONWAY, S.C. – Little Rock took an early lead, then rallied back to force a decisive fifth set against Coastal Carolina Sunday afternoon. But the reigning Sun Belt champions outlasted the Trojans, handing Little Rock the 25-23, 24-26, 23-25, 25-21, 12-15 defeat in Conway, South Carolina.
The highly-contested match featured 42 ties and 20 lead changes throughout as both teams battled back and forth for the duration. Little Rock held the edge in nearly every statistical category, leading in kills (61-59), hitting percentage (.210 - .177), assists (59-56), digs (81-78) and blocks (11-6).
Veronica Marin led the way for Little Rock, finishing with a team-high 18 kills and seven blocks, including four solo, hitting .429 for the match.
Mya Robinson added her second-straight double-double with 11 kills and 13 digs, while
Sydnee Martin moved into second all-time in program history for career digs with 18 on the day, upping her career total to 1,304.
Set one set the tone for the match as the Trojans and Chanticleers battled to 15 ties and seven lead changes, seeing Little Rock rally from a 16-14 deficit to claim a 21-18 lead late in the set. Coastal reclaimed the lead at 23-22, but three-straight Trojan points sealed the 25-23 opening set victory.
Sets two and three played out in similar fashion with Little Rock holding leads, only to see Coastal Carolina rally. The Trojans led 16-12 in the second and were serving for set point at 24-23, but three-straight for the Chanticleers gave them the second 26-24. In the third, Little Rock held a commanding 20-15 lead, only to see Coastal Carolina use a 10-3 run down the stretch to take the third 25-23.
In the fourth, it was the Chanticleers with the late lead, holding a slight 17-16 edge on the Trojans. But Little Rock responded with a 9-4 run to end the fourth, capped by a kill from Robinson, to take the 25-21 lead and forth the decisive fifth set.
With the fifth set tied 6-6, Coastal Carolina powered out to a 13-10 lead on its home court, holding off a final Little Rock rally attempt to hand the Trojans a 15-12 defeat to close out the four-match road trip.
Inside the Stats
- Little Rock falls to 0-3 all-time against Coastal Carolina in the teams' short Sun Belt series.
- Robinson's double-double (11 kills, 13 digs) is her seventh of the season and third since the start of conference play.
- Marin posted a season-high 18 kills as she remains the Sun Belt's blocking leader with 124 total blocks on the year.
- Martin's 18 digs makes her the second Trojan ever to surpass the 1,300 dig mark, leapfrogging Edina Begic (2011-14) for second all-time.
- Taylor Lindberg finished with 27 assists, eight kills, 11 digs and three blocks for her eighth double-double of the season.
- Nedima Kamberovic set a career-best with eight kills on 13 attacks, hitting .462.
- Diana Giordani led the back row with 20 digs, one of four Trojans to register double-digit dig totals.
Looking Ahead
After a four-match road trip, Little Rock returns to the Jack Stephens Center this week for matches against their southern rivals. The Trojans first host ULM on Friday, October 12, before taking on Louisiana on Saturday, October 13. Both matches get underway at 6:30 p.m.
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