THE HILL | In front of an energized home crowd, including alumni and Torchbearer Awardee Betty K. Austin, the Alabama A&M women's volleyball team (2-0) won their second match of the Betty Austin Invitational with a hard-earned 3-0 (25-21, 25- 26, 32-30) victory over Oral Roberts University on Saturday night.
The Bulldogs would dig deep to overcome a resilient Golden Eagles team that kept the pressure on throughout the match, but the trio of Bailey Duckett, Fatima Ramirez and Madison Raybon would combine their talents and amplify each other's strengths to push AAMU to the win.
Ramirez would provide consistency on both sides of the court, leading the team in both kills and digs, as she terminated 16 balls on 37 swings with only two errors, and dug the ball 12 times. She was also the leading scorer of the match, accounting for 17.5 points.
Duckett also found herself with double figure kills and points, scoring 13 tallies from 10 kills and two aces. Senior Madison Raybon would lead both teams in hitting percentage at an impressive .600%. In addition to her 23 assists, junior Grace Tapscott hammered four aces, the most between both teams.
Despite the straight-set win, Oral Roberts made sure every point was fiercely contested, turning the match into a gripping battle from start to finish. ORU's Trinity Freeman led the Golden Eagles in kills, finding the floor 13 times and hitting just over .255%.
The Bulldogs will take to the court once more in a Sunday matinee against UT Chattanooga at noon. Tickets are free to the public and can be live streamed.
Set One
The Golden Eagles kept a three-point lead for most of the first set's early minutes. AAMU initially struggled to find their rhythm, but went on a 6-0 run to take the lead at 18-14, prompted by a terminated ball directly through the middle of the court from Ramirez, and furthered by a pivotal kill by Raybon, set up by Tam Nguyen. This run forced an ORU timeout, but would prove to be too late, as a pair of Bulldog kills and a trio of Golden Eagles errors would put the Maroon and White within two of the set. Duckett would terminate the ball for the second time of the frame, and an Oral Roberts service error would give AAMU the set, 25-21.
Set Two
Both teams would trade points during the early stages of the second stanza, but crucial ORU errors would allow the Bulldogs to find their footing and take a small, but impactful lead at 7-4. The Golden Eagles would call the first stoppage of the set at 10-5, thanks to two consecutive service aces from Tapscott. ORU would battle to lessen the lead, and a duo of terminations and a service ace of their own would put them within one at 17-16. This would be the closest they would be for the remainder of the frame, as Alabama A&M would notch eight unanswered points, paced by three kills from Senior Ryann Tolbert to claim the set 25-16.
Set Three
The third set began with Alabama A&M looking poised to seal the match easily, with Ramirez pounding three consecutive balls to the ground to get the early edge at 5-3. The Bulldogs would balloon their advantage to four at 9-5 before ORU would use a timeout to regroup. Oral Roberts would cut the lead to one directly out of the stoppage, and this would be the beginning of a point-for-point battle to the finish. The Bulldogs would regain a slim, but comfortable lead at 18-15, but the Golden Eagles would be sure not concede at an easy price. ORU scored four unanswered points to level the match at 23 all. After an AAMU timeout, the score tied seven more times, with Oral Roberts attempting to force a fourth set, and the Bulldogs trying to put the match away in front of a thunderous home crowd. In the end, it was Ramirez who delivered the decisive kill, clinching the set 32-30.
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