The Wildcats proved to be too much for Dallas Baptist on Tuesday night. ACU swept the Lady Patriots 25-14, 25-21 and 27-25, bringing ACU’s record to 18-5 on the season.
Sophomore Jennie Hutt led the team with 13 kills. Fresh from consecutive LSC Co-Setter of the Week honors, junior Ijeoma Moronu added 33 assists to her team-leading total of 788.
The Wildcat volleyball team continued it’s streak of strong play with a 3-2 victory over Central Oklahoma Thursday night.
The Wildcats won the first game 25-21 and the third game 25-14. The Lady Tigers would win the second and fourth games to force a decisive fifth game. The Wildcats easily won the final game 15-10
Head Coach Kellen Mock and the ACU volleyball team have established themselves as one of the best teams in the LSC. The Wildcats are 4-1 in conference and trail only sixth-ranked West Texas A&M – who boasts a 6-0 conference record – in the LSC standings.
ACU has one of the best defenses in the conference, leading the LSC in blocks with 200.5 and opponent hitting percentage with .127. Junior Shawna Hines is a stellar defensive player. She leads Division II with 1.58 blocks per set. Hines’ 120 blocks this season also put her in fourth place on the ACU all-time career blocks list at 376. The junior is 300 blocks behind Linda Evans, ACU’s all-time leader in total blocks.
The Wildcats are a balanced team, however. Their offense is also second in the conference in hitting percentage, .218, assists, 12.38 per set, and kills, 13.31 per set.
The Wildcats overall record of 18-5 gives Mock the second-highest winning percentage in ACU history. Mock is 77-39 for her ACU career, a .663 winning percentage. Brek Horn is the only coach ahead of Mock, with a 173-69 record and .715 winning percentage.
The ladies’ play this year puts them in a good position to be one of the 64 teams chosen for the playoffs. ACU is in the South Central Region, which boasts some of the top teams in the nation; the top eight teams in the region go to the playoffs. Regional giants West Texas A&M, Washburn and Emporia State are all ranked in the top 10 in the nation, and Pittsburg State, who was defeated twice by ACU this season, has also been ranked in the top 25 this year. The regional rankings will be released next week.
With eight games remaining on their schedule – all conference games – the Wildcats will continue to push for the LSC Championships and a berth in the playoffs. The ‘Cats will remain in Oklahoma to take on SW Oklahoma State on Saturday.
The Wildcats will end the season with five of their last seven games in the friendly confines of Moody Coliseum, where they remain undefeated.
