By Krista Pirtle
Sports Writer
The Baylor volleyball team’s trend of five set matches carried over into the Bears’ non-conference victory over Texas State (22-25, 25-16, 21-25, 25-22, 15-8).
“We didn’t play our best match, but we found a way to win and that’s important,” head coach Jim Barnes said. “This was a big match for Texas State, and they play tremendous at home, but we just got back to playing aggressively and were able to get the match back. I think our seniors really wanted to make a statement, and they know how important every win is.”
Offensively, Baylor hit .236 on the evening, and Texas State recorded .191.
Junior middle blocker Torri Campbell recorded seven blocks and 18 kills.
Behind her in kills were sophomore right-side hitter Zoe Adom with 14 and senior middle blocker Briana Tolbert with 13.
As a whole, the Bear squad recorded a total of 63 kills.
Campbell, Tolbert and Adom all recorded hitting percentages above .200 with .410, .370 and .270 respectively.
“We have to credit Torri (Campbell) and Bri (Tolbert) for stepping up and leading the charge offensively,” Barnes said. “Allison (King) had a great night digging and passing, and as a competitor, she really brought an edge to her game that helped us pick it up. Zoe played an efficient game, and that’s what we were looking from her.”
At the net, Baylor had and Texas State were even with blocks at nine.
Junior setter Kate Harris recorded yet another double-double with 55 assists and 13 digs on the evening.
Senior libero Allison King led the backcourt with 34 digs.
The first set was neck and neck with the two squads even though Baylor hit at .109 and Texas State hit .306.
The Bears found their groove in the second set hitting at .424.
The set was tied at seven, but Baylor mustered a 7-0 run to go up 14-7 to eventually capture the set.
Texas State bounced back after the break, going up two sets to one.
The Bobcats were one point away from winning the set, but a pair of Baylor kills and a Bobcat error put the Bears within four points before Texas State closed out with a kill.
Baylor fought back in the fourth set, edging out Texas State 25-22.
This set was the most even out of the sets, with both teams hitting over .200 and Texas State leading at the net 18 kills to 14.
The fifth set was not a question of conditioning for the Bears as the team had played its two previous to five as well.
This factored in to Baylor’s advantage as the Bears finished off the Bobcats, propelled by nine kills and five Texas State errors.
Baylor (17-9) returns to conference play Saturday as it travels to Missouri to take on the Tigers at 2 p.m.
Earlier this season, the Bears battled Missouri in five sets to walk away victorious.
Baylor looks to sweep.
