The Horned Frog volleyball team went 2-1 in hosting the Molten/Fort Worth Plaza Invitational over the weekend, beating Maine and Campbell, but falling in four games to No. 5 Minnesota.Against Minnesota, the Frogs cruised past the Gophers to take the first game 30-20, but the win only lit a fire under the Gophers, propelling them to win the next three games snapping the Frogs eight-match win streak and dropping the team to 8-3 on the season.
Jessica Byrnes’ five kills and Kelly Bowman’s 20 assists paced the Gophers through the second game, while Jessy Jones and Sarah Florian combined for eight kills in game three. Minnesota finished the Frogs in the fourth game, 30-17.
Despite the loss, juniors Anna Vaughn and Calli Corley thought the team played well.
“We gave it everything we had, and came out strong in the first game,” Corley said. “We’ve had good preparation, and showed a lot of intensity out there.”
Head coach Prentice Lewis also said she thought the team played well.
“If we can be that consistent every week, we’ll always have a chance to win,” Lewis said.
Sophomore Talaya Whitfield paced the Frogs against Minnesota with a career-high 12 kills, and freshman Nirelle Hampton had 37 assists.
The Frogs started the weekend by knocking off Maine and Campbell in three games each.
In the first match, Maine’s Shannon Fotter combined her nine kills with Shelly Seipp’s 20 assists to lead the Black Bears.
For TCU, sophomore Loren Barry contributed 18 digs while Vaughn blasted 11 kills while hitting .588 in the field. Alissa Brackeen led the charge on offense for the Campbell Camels in the second match with 13 kills, while Sarah Hill contributed 11 digs on defense.
Against Campbell, Corley set a new career high with four aces, while Hampton turned in a fine game with 37 assists, eight kills and six digs.
Whitfield and Vaughn were named to the all-tournament squads for their efforts in the Molten/Fort Worth Plaza Invitational.
Lewis and the Frogs will look to build on their strong play at the Nike/Courtyard Marriott Invitational at the University Recreation Center on Friday and Saturday.
The Frogs hope to begin a new winning streak against Winthrop on Friday with Grambling State and Stephen F. Austin to follow in the tournament.