Texas Southern dropped a hard-fought 3-1 contest to Abilene Christian on Friday in the finale of the Houston invitational on Friday evening inside the H&PE Arena.
Abilene Christian gradually created separation behind its offensive attack. The Wildcats produced 18 kills on 37 attacks, hitting .270 for the set, while TSU recorded nine kills on 31 attempts. ACU led 12-8 but TSU answered with a 5-1 surge to knot it all 13-all. The Wildcats went on a 9-2 run to answer TSU's run. Once again, TSU fought back with a vengeance and narrowed the gap to two points but lost a challenge which would've reduced the deficit to one. Morgynne McQueen's kill cut it to 24-22 but ACU closed out the set with a kill to claim set one 25-22.
Texas Southern responded with one of its strongest stretches of the evening in the second set.
The Tigers remained aggressive offensively and battled through another close frame. TSU finished the set with 10 kills while limiting Abilene Christian to 12 kills and a .026 hitting percentage. With the score tied at 23-23 late in the frame, Texas Southern was able to make the plays necessary to finish the set. The Tigers secured the final points to take the second set 25-23, evening the match at one set apiece. The second-set performance gave Texas Southern renewed momentum heading into the intermission as they broke open a 13-13 contest with a 7-2 run. Leading 20-15, ACU narrowed the gap to 20-18 but Selena Morales' kill ended the run followed by an ACU attack error. The Wildcats would claw back and knot it at 23-all but Ava Houston's kill followed by an ACU error pushed the win towards TSU.
The Wildcats came out aggressively in the third set and quickly established control.
ACU's offense produced its most efficient performance of the match, recording 21 kills on 38 attacks with only four errors for a .447 hitting percentage.
Texas Southern continued to attack, producing 10 kills, but the Wildcats' offensive efficiency proved difficult to overcome. Abilene Christian eventually pulled away to take the third set 25-16, moving within one set of securing the match.
Facing a 2-1 deficit, Texas Southern saved its most dramatic set for the fourth.
The Tigers matched Abilene Christian point-for-point for much of the frame. Both teams recorded 14 kills, while TSU hit .179 compared with ACU's .175. Texas Southern's blocking presence also continued to create opportunities at the net. The Tigers finished the match with seven total blocks, one more than the Wildcats.
The fourth set remained tight deep into the closing points. Neither team was able to create the two-point advantage needed to end the frame at 25.
With the score eventually reaching 24-24, Abilene Christian produced the final two points to escape with a 26-24 victory, ending the match and denying the Tigers an opportunity to play a fifth set.
Morgynne McQueen and Ava Houston led the Texas Southern offensive attack with nine kills apiece. McQueen was particularly efficient, recording nine kills on 16 attacks with just three errors for a .375 hitting percentage. She also contributed three blocks and four digs. Houston added nine kills on 24 attacks and finished with a .208 hitting percentage. She was a major factor at the net, recording a team-high four blocks, while also collecting seven digs. Lauren Battle added eight kills, seven digs and three blocks. Battle also finished with a team-high seven digs alongside Houston. Keldri Young contributed five kills, while Selana Morales added five kills in three sets of action. Aaliyah Brown recorded four kills and three blocks. Setter Ava Ray orchestrated the Texas Southern attack with a team-high 20 assists. Ray also recorded six digs and one service ace while playing all four sets. Kadence Davison added 15 assists and six digs, while Lauanna Pino contributed three assists, five digs and a service ace.
TSU is back in action on Tuesday at UTRGV for a 6 p.m. start.
