RUSSELLVILLE, Ark. — Hunter Eshnaur tallied 30 kills and 20 digs, Madison Nagel added 30 digs and Kaci Jackson 21 digs as the Arkansas Tech women's volleyball team ran its winning streak to 15 matches in a row with a 3-1 win over Williams Baptist and a 3-0 sweep of Bacone Tuesday at Tucker Coliseum.
The Golden Suns (21-5) picked up solid individual efforts in each match as well, including 53 assists and six kills from Sarita Stegall in the first match, and 38 helpers by Alyssa Kool in the final match. Tech totaled five double-digit kill performances on the day, and seven double-figure dig matches by individuals.
Tech picked up five kills in the first set of the day against Williams Baptist (16-12) from McCall Wilkins and three each out of Kaylee Konsella, Mariah King, Jackson and Eshnaur to turn back the Eagles in the first set. The Suns hit .302 in the game, never trailing and building a solid lead through the middle of the set. Williams Baptist got as close as 17-16, but Tech netted eight of the final 10 points to seal the early advantage.
The Suns had a tough run in the second set, falling in the game to tie things up, but things turned around quickly from there. Tech hit .600 in the third set — picking up 15 kills against no errors — to take the lead once again. Katie Huff picked up four kills and two blocks, and Eshnaur added three kills and four digs as the hosts went on a 6-0 run early to stretch their lead to eight at 13-5, and didn't lead by fewer than seven the rest of the way. Another six-point run made it 24-11 and all but ended the set.
Tech scored the first three points of the fourth set and didn't look back from there. Eshnaur put up five kills and four digs in the final set, while Huff posted six kills on seven swings. For the match, Huff put up 10 kills on a .643 hitting percentage, while Eshnaur hit .303 with 15 kills and 10 digs. Wilkins posted 11 kills on .450 hitting with five blocks, and Konsella chipped in with 10 kills and five more blocks. Jackson put up eight kills and 10 digs, while Nagel led the way with 16 digs.
After a break while the other two teams took to the court, the Suns came back to take on Bacone (0-25), which pushed the hosts in the first set. Tech sprinted out to leads of 7-1, 12-2 and 15-3 early, but had to hold off a comeback, as the Warriors charged back to within 21-18 late. Kills from Rachel Hampton and Wilkins, along with two errors, were enough to close out the Tech victory.
The Suns hit .379 in the opening set, while Bacone managed a .200 percentage, but those numbers did not stay as close over the final two games. In the second, Tech gave up just three kills to the Warriors, who hit -.062. An early 3-2 Suns lead turned into an 8-2 advantage on five kills and an error, and when the guests managed to inch their way back into it, an eight-point run ballooned the lead to 16-6. Sara Stovall put up four kills in the set, while Kimberly Huff managed three kills on four attempts, and Nagel pumped out eight digs.
Another 8-0 in the early stages of the third set took the score from 6-5 to 14-5, and the Suns would lead by no fewer than five the rest of the way. Eshnaur put up four kills and four digs, while King added three kills on three swings and an ace during that final set. King put up seven kills on a .500 attack percentage and five blocks in the match. Hampton added seven kills on a .429 percentage, while Eshnaur led with 15 kills and put up 10 digs for her second double-double of the day.
"In the nightcap, Rachel Hampton came in offensively and did a really good job terminating," coach Kristy Bayer said. "Now we're looking forward to finishing up the last portion of our conference play, and we need to be focused and ready to go."
The Golden Suns are back in action Thursday, hosting Henderson State at 6 p.m. for Jersey Night, where the team will hold a silent auction for their jerseys, with proceeds going toward Tech's "Fight On" Against Childhood Hunger initiative.
-FIGHTON-
