Oct. 15, 2003

Box Score

LUBBOCK, Texas - Sophomore setter Emily Huston had a career-high 65 assists, while senior outside hitter Tisha Schwartz recorded her fourth-straight double-double with 20 kills and a career-high 22 digs as Baylor held off Texas Tech, 3-2 (30-27, 28-30, 30-27, 28-30, 15-10), in Big 12 action Wednesday night at United Spirit Arena.

Freshmen middle blockers Desiree Guilliard-Young, Nicole LeBlanc and Eszter Kovacs each had career highs in kills as Guilliard-Young and LeBlanc had 15 each and Kovacs had eight in three games. Freshman outside hitter Andrea Vakulya posted a double-double with 14 kills and 12 digs and also added five blocks, three of them solo. Senior libero Stevie Nicholas also added 16 digs for the Bears (11-10, 3-5 Big 12).

Kelly Johnson led Texas Tech (8-9, 0-8) with 30 kills and added 15 digs, while Breanna Pursley had 22 kills and 21 digs. Jessy Herrera chipped in defensively with 18 digs, while Laura Grote had eight kills, 57 assists and 13 digs.

The Bears got off to a quick start in the fifth game, scoring four-straight behind the serve of sophomore defensive specialist Marisa Kersten to take a 4-1 lead. Baylor put together another four-point run to go up 9-3 and held on down the stretch to seal the win, 15-10.

Game one was tight as neither team was able to pull away. Baylor scored three-straight to take a 13-11 lead and later went ahead 23-20. Texas Tech went on a run of its own to tie the game, 23-23, but Baylor scored two-straight points after a timeout and used the momentum to go up, 29-25, the largest lead by either side the entire game, and held on for a 30-27 win. The Bears hit .263 for the game and were led by Schwartz, who had four kills. The Red Raiders hit .256 and got seven kills each from Pursley and Johnson.

The Bears got off to a slow start in game two, but took a 16-13 lead by scoring four-straight points. Baylor led 19-16, but Texas Tech came back to score four-straight and take a 20-19 lead. The two sides traded point-for-point with eight ties the rest of the game, until Texas Tech scored the last two points of the game to even the match, 30-28. The Bears hit .245 and were sparked by six kills from Vakulya, while the Red Raiders hit .326 and got seven more kills from Johnson and six from Pursley.

Texas Tech held a slim lead for the first part of game three, until Baylor tied the score, 17-17. The Bears then took the lead, 22-19, as Kovacs had three kills in a five-point span. The Red Raiders cut the lead to one on two occasions, but the Bears held on for a 30-27 victory. The Bears hit .400 for the game, getting five kills from Schwartz and four each from Guilliard-Young and LeBlanc. The Red Raiders hit .304, with Pursley and Johnson leading the way.

Baylor jumped out to a 9-6 lead in game four, but Texas Tech bounced back by scoring four-straight to take a 10-9 lead. The two teams tied five times until the Red Raiders jumped out to a 20-16 lead, but Baylor came right back with five-straight to take a 21-20 lead. The two teams then tied eight times before Texas Tech won the final two points to send the match to a decisive fifth game, 30-28. The Bears hit .190, while the Red Raiders hit .182.

The Bears return to action when they host No. 8 Nebraska on Saturday at 7 p.m. at the Ferrell Center.