BRYAN-COLLEGE STATION, Texas – A career effort from London Austin-Roark and a breakout performance from Destiny Cox paved the way for Texas A&M volleyball’s first home victory of the 2021 campaign, as the Aggies defeated the Texas A&M-Corpus Christi Islanders in a clean 3-0 sweep on Monday afternoon inside Reed Arena.
With the victory, the Aggies climb above the .500 mark and now boast a 3-2 record while the Islanders drop to 1-5 overall. In the all-time series between the two programs, A&M adds to its lead and now maintains a 4-0 advantage.
As a team, the Maroon & White dominated in practically every statistical category, owning the margins in kills (44-40), service aces (8-5), digs (64-58) and total blocks (15-6). Austin-Roark proved to be a model of efficiency, setting a new career high in hitting percentage by logging 12 kills on a .667 clip. She also shattered her career high in service aces set last week with four against the Islanders. Cox stood out on the pins, finishing with double-digit kills for the first time in her Aggie career (13) and setting a season-high hitting percentage at .433. Additionally, Taylor Voss found success behind the service line after logging a season-high three service aces.
Defensively, libero Macy Carrabine led the way with 21 digs while Voss cleaned up 13 more and Camryn Ellis fell just shy of the double-digit mark with nine. At the net, senior middle blocker Mallory Talbert smashed back five total blocks, including a pivotal solo jam at the end of the opening set.
Texas A&M-Corpus Christi got out to an early 5-0 lead, but Talbert stalled the Islanders’ momentum with the team’s first kill of the match. The teams exchanged points until a 5-0 scoring run punctuated by a Voss service ace forced A&M-Corpus Christi into a timeout, leading 10-7. A series of Aggie blocks on the left side by Cox and Morgan Christon led to a 15-15 tie, but the Islanders responded with three consecutive kills. An exchange of points highlighted by a Cox kill leveled the set at 20-all, driving the Islanders into a timeout. A&M took its first lead on an Islander attack error and closed the first set with a Talbert solo block, winning 25-22.
The Maroon & White went on a tear to open the second frame, taking an early 8-3 lead underscored by a pair of kills from Talbert. The Islanders surged back, but a quick connection between Camille Conner and Austin-Roark for a kill, followed by a Ciera Hecht ace deadlocked the set at 12. A back-and-forth affair ensued, but the Aggies were able to pull away after Islander attack errors and a kill by Hecht, leading 20-18 as Texas A&M-Corpus Christi took a timeout. Treyaunna Rush broke out with multiple kills toward the end of the set, forcing the Islanders into their final timeout with the Aggies holding a 23-20 lead. Kills from Hecht and Cox closed out the second stanza, with A&M winning by a five-point margin.
Voss opened the third set with her third service ace of the match and Cox continued her reign of dominance on the left pin, directing the Aggies to an early 8-4 lead. Texas A&M Corpus-Christi battled back, however, tying the match at eight and then again at 12. The Maroon & White charged ahead with a 5-0 run as Austin-Roark led the way behind the service line, maintaining a 17-12 advantage. Despite a late push from the Islanders, Austin-Roark dominated within the offense and helped drive the Aggies on a closeout 3-0 run to take the final set, 25-20.
UP NEXT
Aggie volleyball continues their non-conference home stand this weekend, as the Maroon & White host Houston, Albany and UTSA for the Texas A&M Invitational at Reed Arena on Friday and Saturday. A&M opens the tournament with a 6 p.m. first serve against Houston on Friday night.
BIRD BITS
Head Coach Laura “Bird” Kuhn
On her feelings after the team’s first home victory…
“It feels good. We never take 3-0 wins for granted. I think there will always be things that we need to clean up and be better at. It’s awesome to be back, obviously we had a long road trip, and it feels great to be playing in front of the 12th Man. It was a big weekend here in Aggieland, so it just felt good. There were good vibes flowing with the team, and it felt really great to be home.”
On the early timeout she took in the first set…
“This group, we can be slow starters sometimes. Even though the team has energy, it feels like they often need to settle into the vibe of the game and get things rolling after their first contact. Sometimes it takes us calling a timeout to settle into the match, but hopefully, as we go along, it’s going to click for them.”
Senior MB London Austin-Roark
On starting the home slate with a win…
“I think it’s big. I agree with Bird, I think sweeping a team 3-0 is big for us, but we can’t set limits for ourselves. It’s only up from here. We can only get better, and I think we can continue to improve as we keep working in practice. At the end of the day, we try to focus on what we’re doing on the court, but it’s definitely nice to have the sound of the 12th Man around you, and I’m really glad we got the win for them.”
Junior OH Destiny Cox
On the team’s overall performance…
“This was our first official home game since our exhibition against Baylor. I think that it’s good to have all the fans back. It’s early in the season so we have a lot of things to work on, but I like the way that we played today. I think that this was a really good start. I’m excited for this weekend and I know that it’s only going to get better from here.”
Story courtesy of Texas A&M Athletics