STEPHENVILLE, Texas — Tarleton State Volleyball fell in straight sets against North Texas in the final match of the Texan Classic on Saturday afternoon in Wisdom Gym.
The Texans (6-6) finish their final tournament of the season, 2-1. The Mean Green (10-2) posted the best record of the Texan Classic, winning all three matches.
 
The final match of the Texan Classic to start Tarleton State Family Weekend, posted the largest home crowd in program history. 1,860 fans packed Wisdom Gym to support the Texans, breaking the record from the Texans previous night's match against Louisiana Tech.
 
Breannah Peterson led the Texans with 13 kills. She also added a trio of blocks. Alyssa Dinh paced the Texans with a season-best seven blocks while adding nine kills at a .429 clip. Setters Megan Hodges and Teya Nguyen each tallied 16 assists. Libero Morgan Carter led the way with 14 digs.
 
Dinh and Carter each earned selections to the Texan Classic All-Tournament Team. Dinh notched 15 kills across the three matches while hitting .464. She posted a team-high nine blocks and added two digs. Carter record 46 digs and eight assists on the weekend.
 
In the first set, the two squads traded points resulting in three ties in the first eight total points. Tied at four, the Texans burst on a 4-1 run to take an early 9-5 lead. A spread-out attack from the Texans with kills from LaNeah Lara, Dinh and Madison Rice-Locket put the Texans in the lead, 15-11, at the media break. Coming out of the timeout, the Mean Green took control of the second half of the match. Quickly, they compiled a 5-1 run to tie the frame at 16. The two squads went back-and-forth over the next several points forcing three more ties. Ultimately, The Mean Green strung together three points to take a 21-19 lead and force a Texan timeout. The Texans faced set point, 24-21 but didn't back down. Three straight points capped by a huge Peterson block to tie the set at 24. After a North Texas timeout, the Mean Green took the final two points of the stanza to take the first set, 26-24.
 
The Mean Green started out the second frame on a 6-2 run. A pair of Peterson kills brought the Texans within three, 8-5. Trailing 13-7, the Texans used a 4-0 run to cut their deficit to just two. Back-to-back kills by Madison Frank started the run. Blocks from Dinh and Rice-Locket and a Rice-Locket solo block forced a Mean Green timeout. North Texas expanded their lead to five, 18-13, but the Texans weren't done fighting. The Purple and White cut the UNT advantage to two following another 3-0 run. Tarleton State kept fighting with back-to-back kills from Frank and Dinh to cut the margin to just one, 23-22. But the Mean Green were able to string together a pair of point to take the second frame, 25-23.
 
North Texas notched the first point of the third set, but the Texans swapped points tying the set at five. North Texas jumped out on a 4-1 run to distance themselves from the Texans, 10-6. But, the Texans fought back. The Purple and White used a 4-1 run, to cut their deficit down to just one, 12-11. The Mean Green answered the run with a 5-1 burst of their own to take a 17-12 advantage, but not for long. The Texans spurted off on a 4-0 run fueled by a pair of kills from Peterson and a service ace by Nguyen to bring the Purple and White within one, 17-16. After an UNT kill, the Texans took the lead on a 4-0 run, 20-18. Leddy Rae Guinn made her first appearance in the match serving four-straight points for the Texans and forced a North Texas timeout. Out of the break, the Mean Green ultimately notched seven of the final nine points to claim the third set victory, 25-22.
The Texans conclude their non-conference slate after the four tournaments. Tarleton State will open WAC play at California Baptist on Thursday at 9 p.m. followed by Utah Valley on Saturday at 2 p.m.
 
All-Tournament Team
MVP: Loredana Fouonji, North Texas
Reagan Bedell, North Texas
Alyssa Dinh, Tarleton State
Morgan Carter, Tarleton State
Sydnee Carter, Louisiana Tech
Martyna Lubowicz, Arkansas - Pine Bluff