Hogs Set New Highs, See Debuts in Sweep Over Lady Hornets

Not only did Arkansas earn its second sweep in as many days with a victory over Alabama State on Friday, but the Hogs set a new record and saw collegiate debuts along the way.

The Razorbacks hit .536 as a team on the match, the first time ever that Arkansas has hit over .500 as a team in one match and a new program record. Six Hogs hit over .500 on the night, which included new career highs for seniors Jill Gillen (.714) and Maggie Cartwright (.692). Gillen had a team-high 11 kills on 14 swings and Cartwright came in second with nine kills on 13 attempts with zero errors. No Razorback registered more than one error in the match.

Three Hogs also hit the floor for the first time on Friday night, with sophomores Zoi Evans, Jada Lawson and Rosana Hicks all rotating in for Arkansas. Evans posted three kills on five swings with no errors for a .600 hitting percentage and registered one solo block and two block assists. Lawson had two kills on five swings, and Hicks contributed a block assist to Arkansas’ six total.

Set 1
The match started close between the two teams, until a four-point run featuring two kills from Hailey Dirrigl and one from Taylor Head put the Hogs up by four at 11-7. Alabama State called time, but Arkansas kept extending its lead out of the break and another four-point tear made the advantage 19-9 in favor of the Hogs. The Lady Hornets put up three out of another timeout, but the run was stifled there by a kill and an ace from junior Taylor Head. Alabama State got a point back, but the Razorbacks answered with kills from Cartwright and an ace from sophomore Courtney Jackson for the 25-13 set victory.

Set 2
Arkansas wasted no time in the second set and quickly strung together five unanswered points, including two Head kills and an ace from sophomore setter Hannah Hogue, which prompted an Alabama State huddle. The Hogs only allowed two Lady Hornet points after that and tacked on five more for a 10-2 lead. Three straight kills from Cartwright, Dirrigl and Gillen and two Alabama State attack errors then grew the lead to 12 and forced another Lady Hornet timeout down 15-3. An ace from graduate setter Gracie Ryan, a pair of kills from Dirrigl and one each from Gillen and graduate middle blocker Tatum Shipes contributed to a 5-3 Arkansas run which pushed the Hogs over 20 points. Evans’ first collegiate kill widened the gap to eight, and Alabama State hit double digits with a kill, but the Razorbacks answered with two from Shipes and Head and took set two 25-10.

Set 3
The third and deciding set began with an Arkansas first as Jada Lawson made her Razorback debut and drilled in the first kill for the Hogs. Alabama State evened it, but Arkansas rattled off six straight points with two kills each from Cartwright and Gillen and two Jackson aces for a 7-1 advantage. Alabama State cut the edge to four out of a timeout, but Arkansas went back up by seven at 13-6 thanks to an ace from Shipes. The Lady Hornets then went on a 5-1 run, which included four unanswered points, and came the closest to the Hogs down 14-11. A Cartwright kill and two Alabama State attack errors pushed the gap back to six, and the Hogs led by at least five from then on. A Gillen kill put Arkansas over 20, and four straight points including kills from Shipes and Lawson closed the third 25-15 for Arkansas and for the match sweep.

Next Up
Arkansas wraps up tournament action in Colorado on Saturday with a match against Florida Gulf Coast at noon. Live stats will be provided by Colorado State University.

More Information
Visit ArkansasRazorbacks.com for the latest information on all things Arkansas Volleyball. You can also find the Hogs on social media by liking us on Facebook (Arkansas Razorback Volleyball) and following us on Twitter and Instagram (@RazorbackVB).