Box Score
RICHARDSON – It's beginning to feel like 2007 all over again. McMurry defeated East Texas Baptist 25-23, 25-21, 24-26, 25-16 Friday in the quarterfinals of the American Southwest Conference and will play Hardin-Simmons at 5 p.m. Friday for the semifinals round.
Two years ago McMurry had the same scenario in the same gym at UT-Dallas and defeated ETBU in five sets. However, Hardin-Simmons defeated McMurry in three sets to end the season and in 2009, McMurry will look to change its fate against the Cowgirls who defeated McMurry twice in the regular season.
Bailey Marcum,
Terah Brown and
Danielle Kelton helped lead McMurry's offensive unit Friday with 13, 10 and nine kills apiece while the team hit .201. Marcum hit .273 for the match and continued her hot streak against ETBU. She had 19 kills in the win over the Tigers during the regular season Oct. 16.
Defensively, McMurry was impressive holding the Tigers to just a .037 hitting percentage and the team out-blocked ETBU 10-4. Brown led the blocking charge with seven assisted blocks while Marcum had one solo and two assisted. Kelton narrowly missed a double-double and posted a match-high 24 digs while
Sarah Anding had 21.
McMurry trailed 18-14 in the first set before scoring 11 of the last 16 points of the match to take set one. Then, in set two a back-and-forth game ended in McMurry's favor 25-21. Prior to Saturday's match, McMurry and ETBU's previous five decisions were made in five sets. So with a 2-0 deficit, ETBU fought back to win set three 26-24. However, in the fourth and deciding set, McMurry jumped out to a 6-1 lead and never looked back to oust the No. 2 seed from the east division returning the favor from last year's postseason tournament.
The Tigers ended their season with a 20-11 record and Kourtney Adams led the match with 17 kills in the losing effort.
McMurry improved to 18-11 and will look to avenge to regular season losses to HSU at 5 p.m. in the semi-finals round. The Cowgirls were the regular season champion for the ASC West and enter the match with a 21-6 record after a first-round bye.
