STEPHENVILLE, Texas – Tarleton State tamed the Wildcats in a thrilling four-set match to net the Texans first win over ACU since 2021.
The Texans stunned the Wildcats with a 25-15 first set. Abilene Christian stole set two with a 25-19 final, but the home team took the last two sets 25-20 and 25-18. Tarleton State is now 3-7 in conference and 12-12 overall. After the loss to the Texans, the Wildcats are 5-5 in conference play and 10-12 overall.
Rajini Fitzmaurice led the Purple and White with 12 kills on the match.
Grayson Schirpik followed with 10 of her own and
Emma Burke laid down nine.
Megan Hodges led the Texans in aces (4) and assists (20).
Melina Maldonado Ortiz compiled 17 assists on the match.
Dominating for the Tarleton State defense with new season-highs,
Madison Frank tallied eight blocks,
Allison Bryant compiled five and Fitzmaurice racked up four on the evening.
Matti Theurer contributed 18 digs to lead the team, and Fitzmaurice compiled 12.
The visitors were first to the board with a kill in set one. With three lead changes in the opening frame, the Texans took the reins with a kill from Bryant for the seventh point to claim the lead. With Tarleton State up 9-7, the home team saw a four-score run to increase the lead to a six-point deficit. The Wildcats saw three consecutive points to tally their 12th point, but the Texans responded with another three-score run to see a 20-14 score. A final kill from Chloe Karn added the last point of the set for ACU but the next five points were claimed by Tarleton State for a 25-15 final in the first stanza.
In set two, Fitzmaurice took point one for the Purple and White. The second frame saw eight lead changes and nine ties for an intense back-and-forth battle. With the final tie at point 16, the next two points went to Abilene Christian. An error from the Wildcats tallied point 17 for the Texans. A four-score run from ACU saw the home team down by five. The final points from Tarleton State came from kills from Fitzmaurice and Frank. A kill from Breanna Box and an error from the Texans sealed the deal for the Wildcats at 25-19.
Set three opened with ACU on the board first but Tarleton State took the next three. The Wildcats were first to the fourth point, but the Texans tied the score with a kill from Fitzmaurice. With six lead changes in the third set, Tarleton State broke out at the 10th point and held the lead for the remainder of the frame. A point 20 for the Texans, the Wildcats were down by five. ACU tallied five more points, but the home team took the set 25-20 with a kill from Fitzmaurice to close out the stanza.
The Texans were first on the board in the fourth set. The fourth stanza kept the same pattern as the previous frames with six lead changes and five ties. A service error from the visiting team and a pair of aces from Hodges sent the Texans on their way with four consecutive points to break the tie. From there, the home team stayed in charge with a couple of four-score runs to tip the scale in favor of Tarleton State. Burke claimed the set point for the Texans with a kill to see a 25-18 final.
Tarleton State will hit the road for their next match on Thursday against Seattle U at 8 p.m. CT. The match against the Redhawks can be found on ESPN+.
