LAWTON, Okla. -- Midwestern State put a sudden end to Cameron University’s Lone Star Conference volleyball playoff hopes Tuesday, relying on its height and depth to earn a 3-1 victory in the Aggie Gym.
Scores were 25-19, 20-25, 25-15 and 25-18.
Midwestern improves to 8-5 in the Lone Star and to 14-13 overall. Cameron is 4-9 and 9-17.
Coach Brianne Lowe’s Aggies conclude their season Saturday when they host playoff-bound Tarleton State at 2 p.m.
Karolina Damjanovic – who hit .407 -- and Shelbi Stewart paced Midwestern with 11 kills apiece and Hillary White added 10. The Mustangs hit .169, had four service aces, recorded 13 blocks and had 74 digs..
Megan Olivarez and Adrienne Lawson were Cameron’s top guns with 15 and 14 kills, respectively. The Aggies hit .076, had three aces, nine blocks and 64 digs.
Four kills by Stewart and four unanswered points with Kimberley Jeffrey in the server’s box keyed Midwestern’s win in the first set. MSU hit .140; Cameron .000. Sarah Corbett had three of Cameron’s eight kills.
Cameron closed the second set with a 9-4 run, ending with two kills by Olivarez. CU hit .237, with Olivarez and Lawson supplying five kills apiece. Hillary White had four of Midwestern’s 12 kills; the Texans hit .122. The Ags enjoyed a 10-3 lead until MSU went on an 11-3 run to take its only lead of the set.
MSU fought through five ties before using a 5-1 run to step front and center in the third set. The Mustangs hit .370, with Damjanovic and Stewart providing four kills each. Cameron hit .079, with Lawson and Olivarez each getting five kills.
“We just let it get away early,” Lowe said. “Our attitude was that we were going to be able to take that third set. When things started going bad, we just didn’t respond. That was a big momentum shift right there.”
There were eight ties and three lead exchanges in the fourth set. MSU finally assumed control with a five-point run that featured two kills apiece by White and Caitlin Wallace. White, Damjanovic and Lauren Bayer had three kills each for the Texans; Olivarez had five and Lawson three for Cameron.
“Honestly, we hadn’t talked about the playoffs,” Lowe said. “I hadn’t put that pressure on them, knowing we had to play well to stay in the playoffs. You have to love the game and be able to play well all the time.”
