Louisiana Tech rallies to ease past Grambling State in volleyball action
Photo courtesy of GSU
Haley Gomez (14) and Nyah Ellis (8) celebrate a point against Louisiana Tech Wednesday in college volleyball action in Ruston. GSU won the first set but fell to the Lady Techsters.
The Louisiana Tech Volleyball team came back from a set down to defeat Grambling State by a final score of 3-1 on Wednesday night inside the Thomas Assembly Center on Karl Malone Court.
Tech (2-2) could never get the upper hand in the first set, dropping it 25-16 to GSU (1-2). However, the Lady Techsters regrouped and delivered an overpowering second set win followed by a pair of close sets in three and four to come out on top, 25-13, 25-22, 25-22.
The Lady Tigers outhit the Lady Techsters in the opening set, .206 to .156, as the visiting team registered 10 kills and three aces in route to a 1-0 advantage. Tech found its groove in the second set, getting back-to-back kills from Andrea Spasojevic to spark a 6-0 scoring run to take a 10-5 lead. The home team tacked on a pair of 4-0 scoring runs, including at the very end, to even things up at 1-1.
The Lady Techsters had as much as an eightpoint lead in the third set, but it was wiped away as the Lady Tigers won eight out of nine points to tie it up at 18-18. Sydney Jackwin and Ashley Taylor each produced a couple of kills in a 4-0 run to help Tech secure a 2-1 edge.
The fourth set was the closest with seven ties and four lead changes. Tech was able to gain some separation with a 4-0 run to take a 21-17 lead. GSU sliced the deficit down to one at 22-23, but kills by Taylor and Spasojevic sealed the victory.
Jackwin was the star of the night. After seeing limited action in the opening tournament in Clemson, South Carolina, the freshman was a rock on offense and defense with 19 kills and 17 digs. Taylor was another Lady Techster with double-digit kills at 11 to go along with a game-high five blocks.
“Grambling came in playing with a lot of confidence, which we knew they would,” said Tech head coach Amber McCray. “They made us fight for every point. We came out a little tight in the first set, which you kind of expect in your first home match. We had to find a way to settle down and get ourselves composed.”
With the win, Tech now leads the all-time series over Grambling State 33-1.
The Lady Techsters have won 13 of its last 14 home openers and are now 25-8 over the last 10 years in non-conference home matches.
After having zero kills through the first three matches, freshman Sydney Jackwin produced a double- double with 19 kills and 17 digs. She’s the first Tech player since 2019 to register 15-plus kills and digs in a single match.
Ashley Taylor has recorded double-digit kills in three of the first four matches this season. he leads the team with 43 total kills.
Jayden James paced GSU with 13 kills and nine digs, while Kai Williams tallied 10 kills and seven digs.
Ana Calderon chipped in a team-high 18 assists for the Lady Tigers and Hillary English registered 14 digs, while Nyah Ellis added 13.
Tech makes the long trek to the west coast to take part in the Fresno State Invitational. The Lady Techsters will play two matches on Friday against San Francisco (2 p.m.) and host Fresno State (9 p.m.).
