Tulsa Volleyball Staves Off Missouri State Comeback in 3-1 Road Victory

Wednesday, September 4

Springfield, Mo.

6:00 p.m.

Tulsa

3-1,0-0AAC

Missouri State

2-2,0-0MVC

Tulsa

Missouri St.

Tulsa Volleyball Staves Off Missouri State Comeback in 3-1 Road Victory

9/4/2024 10:03:00 PM | Volleyball

Box Score

BOX SCORE (PDF) | SEASON STATS (PDF)

SPRINGFIELD, Mo. — The Tulsa volleyball team held off the potential comeback by the Missouri State Bears (2-2) Wednesday night and prevailed 32-30 in a gritty fourth set to win 3-1 (25-20, 25-19, 17-25, 32-30) on the road. Tulsa won the first two sets before the Bears took set three and were poised to make a run for a five-set match win before being halted by the Golden Hurricane in the fourth frame. TU improved to 3-1 on the season.

The two teams had multiple statistical similarities as Tulsa combined for 58 kills to Missouri State's 56, while the Bears (70) produced only two more digs than Tulsa (68). What set TU apart was the stellar play from the middle blockers.

Senior Rachel Brown led all Hurricane attackers from the middle with a career-high 16 kills to only three errors in 32 attempts for a .406 hitting percentage. Junior Arianna Mongare put away 11 kills and just one error out of 20 attacks for an even .500 hitting mark. She also contributed four block assists, helping Tulsa win the block battle 10-6. Finally, Tytiana Johnson was one of two players on the night to reject six Bears' attacks, recording one block solo and five block assists while adding five kills of her own.

Other players to reach double-digits in kills were outside hitters Tatum Tornatta (12) and Beth Bayless (10). On defense, Tornatta pitched in six block assists, and Bayless dug out 11 Missouri State attacks for her second double-double on the season.

The TU attack finished with a .233 hitting average and was coordinated by junior setter Brayden Hipp, who assisted a career-high 35 kills at an 8.75 assists per set average while chipping in 14 digs for her second double-double of the year. Freshman setter Brittany Bacorn contributed 12 assists and a service ace.

"A wonderful hard-fought win for us tonight!" said Head Coach Lauren Ramatowski. "Having a balanced offense was a big part of our plan going into this game. Having four people in double-digit kills is a good night, with Rachel at 16 kills, Ari with 11 kills, Tatum with 12 kills and Beth at 10 kills. We know that these next few weeks are about growth for our team. Seeing them grow in their confidence tonight and belief in each other was wonderful to see."

The reliable senior libero Marta Pecalli once again anchored the Tulsa defense, this time with 21 digs at a 5.25 dig-per-set average. She also set up Tulsa attackers with eight kills.

Match Notes

TU has now won the last three matchups with Missouri State … the overall series now stands at 17-4 MSU.
S Brayden Hipp (35 assists/14 digs) got her second double-double of the season and seventh in her career.
OH Beth Bayless (10 kills/11 digs) recorded her second double-double this year and third in her career.
MB Rachel Brown hit a career-high and team-leading 16 kills … it's her second time reaching double-digit kills in her career.
L Marta Pecalli averaged 5.25 digs per set for 21 total digs.
S Brayden Hipp averaged 8.75 assists per stanza and finished with a career-high 35 assists.
Set four saw 21 tie scores and nine lead changes before Tulsa closed out 32-30 to win the match 3-1.
TU hit for 18 kills twice in the second and fourth sets.
The Hurricane hit for .429 as a group in set two.

How It Happened

SET 1 | It was a tightly contested match early on as neither team led by more than two points until after the media break when Tulsa took a 17-14 lead. The Hurricane led by as many as six points before closing out the frame 25-20. MB Rachel Brown (5 kills), MB Arianna Mongare (3 kills) and Beth Bayless (3 kills) each went without an attack error in the frame.

SET 2 | Tulsa never trailed in the second set, allowing the score to be contested only twice. TU led by four points at 7-3 and broke the 10-10 deadlock with a 7-2 run before taking the set 25-19. As a group, the Hurricane hit for .429, committing only three errors and recording 18 kills in 35 attacks. OH Tatum Tornatta was errorless with seven kills out of 10 attempts.

SET 3 | Missouri State avoided the sweep fought back in set three, holding the Hurricane to just nine kills and a .030 hitting percentage while hitting for .385. The Bears took control at 6-5 and never looked back, winning the set by eight points at 25-17.

SET 4 | The fourth set was by far the toughest and most competitive as the teams battled through 21 tie scores and nine lead changes. Neither Tulsa nor Missouri State could maintain a lead of more than two points until the Bears tied it up at 21-21. From there, neither squad could gain a two-point lead to win until the scoreboard read 30-30. Back-to-back kills by MB Rachel Brown set up by Brayden Hipp secured the set 32-30 for the Hurricane and the 3-1 victory.

Tulsa 25 25 17 32
Missouri State 20 19 25 30