Henderson takes opening match

The Sentinel-Record/Richard Rasmussen FIRST IMPRESSION: Henderson State junior Courtney Bolf, a unanimous selection to the All-Great American Conference First Team, performs a dig Thursday during a straight-set victory against Oklahoma Baptist in the quarterfinals of the 2018 GAC Volleyball Championships tournament at Bank OZK Arena.
The Sentinel-Record/Richard Rasmussen FIRST IMPRESSION: Henderson State junior Courtney Bolf, a unanimous selection to the All-Great American Conference First Team, performs a dig Thursday during a straight-set victory against Oklahoma Baptist in the quarterfinals of the 2018 GAC Volleyball Championships tournament at Bank OZK Arena.

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FIRST ROUND: Henderson State's Alex Tyler hits a return Thursday during the Reddies' three-set victory against Oklahoma Baptist in the first quarterfinal of the 2018 Great American Conference Volleyball Championships tournament at Bank OZK Arena.

Henderson State earned its first-ever victory in the Great American Conference's Volleyball Championships Thursday to advance to today's semifinals.

The third-seeded Reddies (27-5) swept the sixth seed Oklahoma Baptist (16-17), 25-19, 25-18, 25-20, to open up this year's tournament. Henderson had not won a postseason volleyball match since defeating West Alabama in 2007 as a member of the Gulf South Conference.

Henderson got early kills from Karlie Greene and Alex Tyler to take a 6-3 lead. The lead was 9-6 until the Lady Bison answered with an 8-3 stretch to take a two-point lead at 14-12.

Three straight kills by Henderson's Adrianna Hartmann gave the Reddies a 16-15 advantage. Another 3-0 spurt gave the Reddies some space.

Henderson's lone senior, Zuzana Ondruskova, then hit four straight kills for the largest lead of the first set at 23-18. Abby Blackburn hit an ace for set point and Greene hit a kill to finish off the set.

The Reddies closed out the opening set by winning six of the final seven points. They hit .432 and committed only two errors.

"I thought we came out a little nervous at first, which is kind of expected, but I think the girls settled down," said Henderson head coach Philip McDaniel. "Once they got comfortable, our defense was solid, which allowed us to transition and make some good swings. Overall, I am very happy, obviously with the result."

The teams were even through the first portion of the second set. Henderson seized control midway through the set as an 8-2 spurt turned a 9-9 tie into a 17-11 advantage.

A kill by Courtney Bolf, an ace from Ondruskova and a kill from Hartmann put the Reddies ahead, 13-10. Bolf later added an assist before Tyasia McGruder and Hartmann combined for a block to push the lead to six points at 17-11.

Oklahoma Baptist never drew closer than four points the rest of the set. Ondruskova again stepped up late in the set with three kills in four points for a 20-14 edge. Bolf hit two more kills to close the set.

"We were very good at the service line today and I thought we were really solid with set-receive," McDaniel said. "Being able to come off of the net, make great defensive plays and get back up in transition -- I think those things were what certainly helped us take this match today."

The Reddies faced an early 4-1 hole in the third set, but kills by Bolf and McGruder led them to a 12-3 run for a 13-7 lead. The Lady Bison found their footing following a timeout and answered with an 8-2 run to tie the set at 15-15.

The teams traded points Henderson took five of the final six points to secure the match. A kill by Ondruskova extended the Henderson lead to three points at 22-19. An ace by Ondruskova and a kill by Greene gave Henderson its first postseason win in more than a decade.

"It's fun," McDaniel said. "It is obviously a little it bigger than our gym. We are able to have some fans here, which always helps. Once we get settled in the environment, see what is around us and that initial awe, after that it is just volleyball."

Bolf, a unanimous selection to the All-GAC First Team, led the offense with 14 kills and a match-high 20 digs with two aces and 16 points. Ondruskova also registered a double-double with 12 kills and 16 digs.

Greene, Hartmann and McGruder finished with eight, seven and six kills, respectively. The trio combined for a .473 attacking percentage.

Kenzie Thoman collected 18 digs. Blackburn and Taylor Scalzi combined for 42 asssts.

Malia Leatherland, an All-GAC Second-Team outside hitter, paced the Lady Bison with 14 kills. She hit .294 for the match.

Henderson will return to Bank OZK Arena today at 3 p.m for the first of two semifinal matches. The Reddies will take on the No. 2 seed, Southwestern Oklahoma State (21-6).

The Bulldogs eliminated seventh seed Southern Nazarene (17-16), 23-25, 25-20, 25-15, 25-17, in the second quarterfinal match on Thursday. Southwestern swept Henderson in Arkadelphia on Oct. 12 in their only matchup this season.

"Our defense was not great against them the first time we played them, so I think they took advantage of some things and hopefully we are going to shore those up a little bit," McDaniel said. "We will tweak a few things, as far as what we do in our blocking schemes. Once we do that, I think we will be able to have a little more control of the net."

The second semifinal is scheduled for 6 p.m. The final is currently scheduled for 2 p.m. on Saturday.

Sports on 11/09/2018

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