For the second straight day, a freshman came up big for Little Rock and the result is a sweep of defending OVC tournament champion Tennessee State that has the Trojans sitting just a half game out of postseason position in the conference.
Kaylee Smith produced career-highs of 23 assists and 22 digs as Little Rock (6-14 overall, 3-6 OVC) beat the visiting Tigers in four sets at the Jack Stephens Center. The Trojans turned in a solid defensive effort with 79 digs, including 16 from
Andrea Roman and 15 by
Bella Cherry.
Daria Burrows led the team with 12 kills,
Daedrianna Cail had seven to go with six blocks and three others –
Jeila Fullerton,
Sophia Garrido and Cherry – each had six kills.
Dariana Valencia had 14 assists.
Little Rock trailed 18-16 in the opening set before closing it out on a 9-4 run. The Trojans trailed by as many as 11 in the second set. Leading 22-15 in the third, Little Rock gave up four straight to make it 22-19, but Cherry ended it with a pair of aces. A 9-2 run in the fourth swung the game from a 12-10 TSU lead to a 19-14 Little Rock advantage.
The Trojans are on the road for their next three matches – next Friday and Saturday at Lindenwood, followed by a Oct. 30 contest at Southeast Missouri. They'll return home Nov. 3-4 against Eastern Illinois.
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