Volleyball takes down No. 14 Baylor

[PonyPride]

From SMUMustangs.com:

SMU Tops No. 14 Baylor In Home Opener To Earn Highest-Ranked Win In Program History

DALLAS (SMU)-- Natalie Perdue recorded 16 kills with teammate Emma Clothier adding 13 to lead the SMU volleyball team to a five set (21-25, 25-23, 25-21, 23-25, 15-10) win over No. 14 Baylor in the 2023 home opener Wednesday night in Moody Coliseum.

The victory marked SMU's highest ranked win in program history. SMU's last win over a ranked opponent came on Sept. 12, 2015 against No. 18 San Diego. SMU won its first match versus a ranked opponent in Moody Coliseum since Sept. 6, 2014, when the Mustangs took down No. 24 Oklahoma.

SMU's high-powered offensive attack saw three different Mustangs record double-digit kills for the third time this season. Perdue earned her second consecutive double-double after paring 13 digs with 16 kills. Clothier tied her season-high in blocks with seven while recording 13 kills on .550 hitting. Jamison Wheeler added 10 kills.

Freshman Hannah Whittingstall shined in her starting debut, tallying eight kills on .583 hitting, and five blocks. Lauren Ohlinger added seven kills, and Naya Shime tallied five kills and six digs.

Celia Cullen turned in her second straight double-double of the season after recording season-highs in assists (54) and digs (19), along with four total blocks. The senior setter eclipsed 2500 career assists. Cullen entered the night with 2497, and passed out 54 in the match taking her career total to 2551.

Defensively, Sina Uluave notched 18 digs, while Brooke Frazier recorded eight.

HOW IT HAPPENED
Set One
Starting the match for SMU were Celia Cullen, Hannah Whittingstall, Lauren Ohlinger, Emma Clothier, Natalie Perdue, Naya Shime, and Sina Uluave. It was the first collegiate start for Whittingstall. Shime kicked off the match with a kill to give SMU the early advantage. The teams went back and forth for the next several points. Back-to-back kills from Ohlinger and one Whittingstall propelled SMU to four unanswered to regain the lead. Ohlinger's sixth kill of the set gave SMU a 15-14 edge at the media timeout. The Bears scored six out of seven after the pause to take a 20-16 lead and force an SMU timeout. A pair of kills from Clothier and one from Perdue sparked a run to bring the set within a point. Baylor won back-to-back hard-fought points to take the first set 25-21.

Set Two
The Mustangs jumped out to an early 4-2 lead. Baylor took its first lead at 6-5 and rode the momentum to a 15-11 lead at the media timeout. Wheeler's first kill of the match brought the Mustangs within three. SMU stayed within striking distance, pulling the set within three on several occasions. Two consecutive kills from Wheeler and a Baylor attack error forced the Bears to call time at 23-22. Shime and Whittingstall blocked Baylor's attack attempt to even the set at 23. Back-to-back Baylor attack errors capped off a 6-0 SMU run that extended through two Baylor timeouts and sealed a 25-23 second set victory.

Set Three
Two kills from Perdue to start the third set kept the momentum going for SMU. Clothier's eighth kill of the match, followed by a Perdue service ace, put SMU ahead by three. The Mustangs led 15-12 at the third set media timeout. SMU took three out of the first four points after the pause to extend its lead to 18-14. Baylor won the next two, but Perdue countered with her 12th kill of the match to give SMU a 19-16 lead. A block from Cullen and Clothier gave SMU its 20th point of the set, and Whittingstall's sixth kill of the match forced a Baylor timeout. Clothier's second service ace of the night extended SMU's run out of the timeout. Three straight Baylor points forced an SMU timeout leading 22-20. A pair of Wheeler kills gave SMU a 24-21 advantage and a Baylor attack error sealed the set for SMU.

Set Four
Baylor jumped out to an early 5-2 lead. Three unanswered from SMU tied the set at seven. Neither team could create separation early in the set. Back-to-back assisted blocks from Clothier and Perdue gave SMU a 13-12 advantage. Baylor led 15-14 at the media timeout. The Mustangs took the first two points out of the pause to regain the lead. A Shime and Whittingstall block extended SMU's margin to 19-17. The Bears took five out of six to take a two-point lead and force an SMU timeout. A Perdue kill ended the Bears run and brought the Mustangs within one. Perdue's 14th kill of the match tied the set at 23 apiece and forced a Baylor timeout. The Bears took both points out of the break to force a fifth set.

Set Five
Both teams traded blows to begin the set. A Whittingstall and Perdue block followed by a Baylor attack error gave SMU an 8-6 edge midway through the final frame. SMU kept its slim margin through the following few points, with Clothier's 12th kill extending SMU's advantage to 11-9. Clothier and Cullen teamed up for a block to force a Baylor timeout with the Mustangs leading 13-9. A Perdue kill paired with another Clothier and Cullen block finished off the 14th-ranked Bears.

FROM THE COACHES:
"I'm super-proud of the fight our team displayed tonight and the discipline against such a solid Baylor team," SMU Assistant Coach Christa Branson said. "There were moments that each of our players were coming up with big blocks or digs and our offense did such a nice job finding ways to score against their defense."

SMU LEADERS:
SMU Kills Leader: Natalie Perdue (16)
SMU Assist Leader: Celia Cullen (54)
SMU Digs Leader: Celia Cullen (19)
SMU Blocks Leader: Emma Clothier (7)
SMU Ace Leader: Emma Clothier (2)

TEAM RECORDS SERIES NOTES:
With the win, SMU moved to 3-3 on the year, and 1-0 in Moody Coliseum.
Wednesday was the 11th meeting between SMU and Baylor. The Mustangs trail the all-time series 5-7.
TEAM NOTES:
The win marked SMU's highest ranked win in program history. SMU's last win over a ranked opponent was on 9/12/15 against No. 18 San Diego.
SMU won its first match versus a ranked opponent in Moody Coliseum since it took down No. 24 Oklahoma on 9/6/14.
SMU posted season team-highs in kills (59), assists (58), blocks (12) and digs (70).
Three different Mustangs recorded 10+ kills for the third time this season.
Three different Mustangs recorded 5+ kills for the fifth time this season.
Four different Mustangs recorded 5+ kills for the third time this season.
Five different Mustangs recorded 5+ kills for the first time this season.
MILESTONE ALERT:
Celia Cullen eclipsed 2500 career assists against Baylor. The senior setter entered the night with 2497, and passed out 54 in the match taking her career total to 2551.
INDIVIDUAL NOTES:
Celia Cullen recorded her second consecutive double-double of the year after passing out a season-high 54 assists and recording 19 digs. Cullen has led the Mustangs and recorded double-digit assists in all six matches.
Natalie Perdue led the Mustangs in kills (16) for the second consecutive match and third time this season. Perdue posted her second consecutive double-double (16 kills, 13 digs). Perdue (19.5) led the Mustangs in points for the third time this season.
Sina Uluave reached double-digit digs for the third time this season after tallying 18 versus Baylor.
Emma Clothier recorded double-digit kills (13) for the second time this season. The graduate middle blocker led the Mustangs in service aces (2) for the first time this season and tied her season-high in blocks with seven.
Jamison Wheeler recorded double-digit kills (10) for the second time this season.

UP NEXT:
SMU hits the road for back-to-back top-25 matchups at the Stacey Clark Classic hosted by Purdue. The Mustangs face the 20th-ranked Boilermakers Friday at 6 CT and the winner/loser of No. 19 Kentucky and No. 21 Houston Saturday at 3 p.m. CT.

[Charleston Pony]

Great hard fought win. The ESPN+ announcers talked about this becoming a home/home series for years to come. Sounds like a great idea and hope it happens. This program is doing a great job scheduling non-conference competition