FAYETTEVILLE — With the second set tied 17-17 and No. 21 Arkansas volleyball set to serve after a block assist from Sania Petties and Romani Thurman, Razorbacks coach Jason Watson turned to Lo Jones on Friday.
“That’s my girl. I trust her always and she always comes in those big moments,” outside hitter Romani Thurman said. “I’m so proud of her, coming from yesterday to today, she’s not phased at all and I think that’s so important. She has a really tough serve.”
Arkansas finished the set with an 8-1 run and Jones’ service earned the Razorbacks’ first five points of the run.
The key sequence helped the Razorbacks (5-0) sweep Wichita State in three sets (25-19, 25-18, 25-18) to remain unbeaten.
They continue their home-opening Wooo Pig Invitational against Louisiana Tech on Saturday and Arkansas-Little Rock on Sunday.
Watson turned to Jones, as he did against Rutgers on Thursday — “Once again: Lo Jones, secret weapon,” he said Friday — for service and she won the set for the Razorbacks.
“That’s what you’re looking for in that sub,” Watson said. “You want them to come in and either close a gap or make a gap. Lo has done that twice now and it’s been remarkable that she can do that.”
Petties and Thurman, as they have been throughout the infant season, were Arkansas’ offensive catalysts.
Petties enterd the Wichita State match ranking second for the Razorbacks in points, kills and block assists and third in hitting percentage. She finished Friday with 12 kills and a team-high .750 hitting percentage.
Thurman entered as Arkansas’ leader in points and kills and led the Razorbacks with a match-high 13 kills Friday and added 4 digs and 2 blocks.
“I think you have to be confident in yourself,” Thurman added. “Hannah [Hogue] makes it very easy for us to feel like we could keep getting back into our groove because she keeps giving us the ball no matter what.”
The Shockers played at a fast offensive pace, particularly near the net, that caused Arkansas problems early in the match. The Razorbacks countered with longer serves to slow Wichita State’s quick movement near the net.
“They couldn’t quite keep that tempo going,” Watson said of the strategy. “We kind of knocked them out of the pocket a little bit and I think that helped. … I think we got a little more familiar with that speed, could get better eyes on it.”
Adapting to the Shockers’ speed allowed for Arkansas to score points in transition and ultimately earn the three-set sweep entering Saturday’s match against Louisiana Tech.
The Razorbacks played a strong defensive match after adapting to the speed of play and covered their ground well.
“I thought we were really good tonight,” Watson said. “I thought that both Courtney [Jackson] and Hannah [Hogue] and everyone dug a ton of balls that gave us a ton of opportunities — like second or third chances — and some stuff. If we can do that and then clean up some stuff on the back end, good things happen.”
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Publish date : 2024-09-06 16:10:00
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