By Bennett Parker | Sports Writer
Baylor went into the locker rooms flustered, trailing two sets to none, grappling to find its groove against Houston.
Head coach Ryan McGuyre’s team came out playing with a newfound sense of urgency and didn’t look back.
“The message coming from within the team was ‘Something’s got to change after the first two sets,'” McGuyre said.
Baylor (13-5, 5-3, Big 12) snuck one out against the Cougars (11-8, 4-4 Big 12). Coming back from two set down to help McGuyre reach his 250th Baylor win in five sets, 21-25, 21-25, 25-16, 25-19, 15-8.
The Bears found new life in the midst of a 7-4 start to the third set. Finally turning the tides with multi-kill efforts from four different players, Baylor extended the lead behind a .565 hitting percentage and cruised to a 25-16 set win capped off by a pair of blocks and a kill from freshman middle blocker Lacy Tinnell.
“Lacey works her butt off in practice every day,” junior outside hitter MJ McCurdy said. “She celebrates big, and it’s a big moment, but also, I’m not surprised. She’s such a hard worker. She’s such a competitor. And she deserves it.”
Houston could not find its rhythm early in the fourth set, and the Bears took full advantage, finding a 15-10 lead due to seven errors from the Cougars.
Baylor finally began to fully look like itself on the back end of the set. McCurdy stepped up with her second and third aces of the night and a pair of crucial digs. The Bears held Houston to a measly .034 hitting percentage in the set, taking it 25-19 and forcing the fifth set.
Baylor’s last do-or-die set left finished in heartbreak against BYU, but the Bears were able to seal the deal in front of the home crowd. Baylor continued to take advantage of sloppy play from the Cougars, committing one error to Houston’s nine.
Three blocks from senior middle blocker Victoria Davis and composed play across the court helped the Bears complete the comeback, winning the final set 15-8. The victory is the fifth time Baylor won a match when trailing 2-0 under McGuyre.
One key in the momentum shift was the block improving for Baylor down the stretch, either denying or slowing down the Cougar attack.
“Blocking showed up, for sure,” McGuyre said. “That was something that needed to be important to us beforehand. They had 19 kills in the first set, 14, 12 and 11. So we just started limiting the points they were getting.”
The Bears finished with 15 blocks — their second-highest mark behind their 20 against Hawaii. Freshman outside hitter Nadiya Johnson led the squad with seven.
Houston came out swinging from the service line in set one, targeting Rakhmanchik, who was having trouble seeing the ball from Houston’s junior outside hitter Syndey Jones, who was hot from the service line all night. The pressure allowed for a 6-1 Cougar lead that the Bears never clawed back from, dropping the opening set 21-25.
The difficult start fueled Rakhmanchik for the rest of the match.
“I didn’t tell [Rakhmanchik] anything,” McGuyre said. “She gets a little mad sometimes … But we trust her. She still hit over .400 with 23 kills, so she’s not going to wear down.”
She tallied 23 kills and only three attack errors for a .417 hitting percentage.
Poor play from the Bears didn’t halt in the second set. Sophomore setter Isabela Haggard struggled to get in sync with her hitters, while Rakhmanchik still struggled on the serve receive, getting aced twice in the set.
Baylor just could not find its groove, stringing together just one three-point run through the first pair of sets. Houston had the momentum going into the break, taking the second set 21-25.
Baylor’s next match is against No. 17 Kansas at 2 p.m. Sunday at the Ferrell Center.
