No. 17 volleyball outlasts BostonCollege

[PonyPride]

From SMUMustangs.com:

No. 17 Mustangs Outlast Boston College

CHESTNUT HILL, Mass. (SMU) – The No. 17 SMU volleyball team survived another road test, defeating Boston College (7-9, 0-4 ACC) in five Sunday on the road with set scores of 25-17, 22-25, 25-18, 16-25, and 15-10. SMU extended their win streak to seven and remains unbeaten in ACC play.

Maya Tabron and Naya Shime each had 17 kills in the win over the Eagles. Tabron's 17 kills came while hitting .359 in the match. Jamison Wheeler earned her fourth double-double of the season with ten kills and ten digs.

Celia Cullen notched a season-high 44 assists and added eight digs. Natalie Foster went for nine kills, three aces, and four blocks.

As a unit, SMU hit .385 with 49 digs. SMU tied their season-high in aces with 11 and also had a season-best 62 kills against the Eagles.

MATCH NOTES:
Sunday's matchup was the first meeting between the two programs.
The win marked head coach Sam Erger's 60th win at SMU.
The Mustangs extended their win streak to seven straight matches and improved to 7-1 on the road
After two weeks of conference action, SMU sits in a four-way tie for first place in the ACC.
The Mustangs won their first five-setter of the season after falling in the previous two against Hawaii and LMU.
SMU has one more road match left on its seven-game road stand. The Mustangs have not lost a match during the stretch.

HOW IT HAPPENED:
SET ONE | The Mustangs got off on the right foot like they have all season, taking a five-point advantage (8-3) with a short run ending on back-to-back kills from Tabron. The Eagles surged back into contention shortly after, evening the score at 11-all. SMU slowly developed a lead and then finished strong, recording eight of the final ten points of the set to win the frame 25-17. The Mustangs had a solid defensive opening set, collecting 18 digs, nearly six over their season average. Tabron led the way with five kills in set one.

SET TWO | Boston College took an early 3-0 lead and extended that lead to as much as six before SMU came storming back with a six-point run, which tied the set and forced a BC timeout. The Eagles strung together three straight out of the timeout to go up 13-10. SMU kept within striking distance but could never sneak past Boston College in the second frame. The Eagles won the set 25-22. The Eagles came into the match among the best in the nation in blocks per set and showed that today, finishing with 12 blocks, five in the second frame.

SET THREE | SMU got back on track in the third set, getting off to a 10-6 lead. SMU collected three straight, two of which came by Shime. They increased their lead to six with an ace from Tabron. Boston College clawed back within three twice down the stretch, but a four-point run to close out the set. Naya Shime led the set with five kills on nine swings.

SET FOUR | Boston College controlled the fourth set from the jump, going up 9-2 to start the frame. The Mustangs cut their deficit to five with three straight on kills from Shime and Tabron and an ace from Cullen. The Eagles answered with a five-spot to go up 17-7. SMU was never able to recover. Boston College went on to win the set 25-16 and held the Mustangs to their lowest hitting percentage of the match.

SET FIVE | The Mustangs start the deciding set well despite the set four loss, racing to a 4-2 lead. The Eagles quickly tied it with back-to-back kills, followed by a four-point swing for the Mustangs to take an 8-4 advantage. Another Eagles run cut the Mustangs' lead to one. SMU sealed the deal earning, logging four of the final five points after taking a three-point lead on a kill from Wheeler. Tabron put her stamp on the match with a kill on an over ball for the win.

SMU LEADERS:
SMU Kills Leader: Maya Tabron/Naya Shime (17)
SMU Assist Leader: Celia Cullen (44)
SMU Digs Leader: Jamison Wheeler (10)
SMU Blocks Leader: Natalie Foster (4)
SMU Ace Leader: Natalie Foster/Jamison Wheeler (3)

UP NEXT:
SMU Volleyball will conclude their seven-game road trip against No. 1 Pittsburgh on Wednesday, Oct. 9 at 6 p.m. CT, airing on the ACC Network.

[Terry Webster]

That was a great match to watch. Closer than I expected but glad that we pulled out the 5 set. The kill shot to end the match was pretty awesome.