North Texas (10-7, C-USA 4-1) volleyball beat Southern Mississippi (1-18, C-USA 0-5) in three straight sets by a score of 25-14, 25-15, 25-18.
The starters for North Texas against Southern Miss were junior outside hitter Barbara Teakell, junior setter Kaleigh Skopal, junior middle blocker Miranda Youmans, sophomore outside hitter Rhett Robinson, junior outside hitter Valerie Valerian, freshman middle blocker Alysha Johnson, and freshman defensive specialist Jordan Burks. Sophomore middle blocker Sarah Haeussler is expected not to play due to injury.
“[Haeussler] is probably going to be out for the rest of the season,” head coach Palileo said. “We are still trying to find out what the main issue is and once we diagnose it I am sure something will come out.”
Robinson had 14 kills with a hitting percentage of .571 along with an assist and a dig. Teakell had 11 kills with a hitting percentage of .526 in concert with Skopal’s 40 assists and nine digs. Burks had 11 digs and three assists. North Texas got three aces each from Teakell, Burks, and freshman defensive specialist Aleeyah Galdeira. Nine out of the 13 players that played in the match got a dig.
“I was really excited about our defense,” Palileo said. “I just wish we had a little more energy to go with it to make the game a little more exciting.”
As a team, North Texas had 46 kills against Southern Miss with 29 kills. North Texas had three aces, compared to Southern Miss who had no aces during the match. The Mean Green had 11 blocks while the Golden Eagles had 2 blocks. The Mean Green had 46 assists in the match compared to Golden Eagles’ 26 assists. The Mean Green outscored Southern Miss in the match by 60 to 31.
“[Teakell] had a great game today,” Palileo said. “We have been working on knowing how to hit a ball when you are in trouble or in uncomfortable situations.”
For Southern Miss, the player with the most kills was freshman outside hitter Gillian Hidalgo with 9 kills. The player with the most digs for USM was junior defensive specialist Madison Lawler with 12 digs. The player with the most assists and blocks for Southern Miss was junior setter Piper Matsumoto.
“Southern Miss has always played us tough,” Palileo said. “Just take it one match at a time and take care of business and I think we will come out okay.”
UP NEXT: North Texas volleyball goes back on the road in conference to play at Charlotte on Oct. 18 and at Marshall on Oct. 20.
Featured Image: Sophomore outside hitter Rhett Robinson celebrates a rally after spiking the ball during the game against Southern Miss on Oct. 13, 2019. The Mean Green won the game 3-0. Image by Isabel Anes
Article Originally Published by on North Texas Daily
Source: North Texas Daily