Baylor
*Texas A&M
No. 14 Texas A&M Downs Volleyball 3-0
11/3/2004 12:00:00 AM | Volleyball
Nov. 3, 2004
WACO, Texas - Baylor got off to a slow start but rebounded to put up a fight against No. 14 Texas A&M before falling 3-0 (30-14, 30-26, 30-27) in Big 12 Conference volleyball action Wednesday night at the Ferrell Center.
Sophomore middle blocker Desiree Guilliard-Young (Berkeley, Calif.) hit .450 and led the Bears (11-14, 3-11 Big 12) with 11 kills and four blocks. Junior outside hitters Stella Odion (Houston, Texas) and Kelly Spriggs (Houston, Texas), who hit .500, added 10 kills each. Freshman libero Kristen Schramek (San Antonio, Texas) led Baylor defensively with 11 digs, while sophomore right-side hitter Nicole LeBlanc (Tampa, Fla.) chipped in with 10.
All-American Melissa Munsch and Laura Jones led Texas A&M (15-5, 11-3) with 17 kills each, while Munsch added a match-high 15 digs. Christi Hahn added 11 kills, while Kendra Felder had 10. Kari Kelly posted 51 assists and 10 digs for the Aggies.
"We prepared well for everything (Texas A&M) was going to do and we had a good practice yesterday," head coach Jim Barnes said. "I didn't know what team showed up in the first game, but we were able to come back and forget about it. We played well enough offensively to win this match, but our problem tonight was defense. Every time we got a little momentum going a ball would hit the floor that we should have been able to get."
Texas A&M raced out to a 16-5 lead in game one courtesy of an 11-1 run behind the tough serving of Munsch. The margin was enough cushion as the Aggies cruised to a 30-14 victory. Texas A&M hit .405 for the game, while holding Baylor to .143.
The Bears fell behind by five early in game two, but came back to tie it at 14-14. Baylor went up 18-16 to force a Texas A&M timeout, and the Aggies responded with five straight points to regain a lead they wouldn't relinquish. The Bears got to within two at 23-21, but couldn't get any closer as they dropped a 30-26 decision. The Aggies hit. 364 for the game with 23 kills, while the Bears hit .359.
Baylor kept fighting in game three, tying the score at 10-10 and 18-18, but Texas A&M scored four straight to take a 22-18 advantage. The Bears crept back to within one at 27-26, but the Aggies closed the door and held on to clinch the match, 30-27. Texas A&M hit .277 for the game, while Baylor hit .217.
The Bears outblocked another top-10 nationally ranked blocking opponent, 8.0-3.0, but the Aggies outdug the Bears, 49-42, and outaced Baylor, 10-3. Texas A&M hit .344 for the match, while Baylor hit .242.
Baylor returns to action when it hosts Iowa State Saturday at 7 p.m. at the Ferrell Center.
