JONESBORO, Ark. – Missouri State held the University of Tennessee at Martin to 18 points or fewer in each set and a .042 attack efficiency – the lowest for an MSU opponent under second-year head coach Steven McRoberts – in sweeping the Skyhawks by scores of 25-18, 25-13, 25-18 Saturday afternoon in the A-State Invitational at First National Bank Arena.
Newcomer Manuela Ibarguen hit .400 with 16 kills and nine digs, Amelia Flynn added a double-double with 11 kills and 12 digs, and freshman Morgan Sprague served three of MSU’s eight aces to go along with 27 assists and 15 digs for her third double-double in as many matches to help the Bears move to 2-1 on the season.
“Ella (Manuela Ibarguen) had a really nice match for us today offensively,” McRoberts said after the win. “Teagan (Polcovich) did a great job leading our floor defense and Morgan had another solid double-double and provided some pressure behind the service line. We grew as a team this weekend and we are excited about the direction this group is heading!”
The first set was all about runs, with the Bears scoring the first five points of the match, leading 17-9 after a 6-0 spurt, trailing in between, and then closing it out with another 6-0 run. Flynn tallied seven kills to lead the offense.
Missouri State broke open the second set with a 5-0 run to make it 15-7, and UTM (0-3) committed 10 attack errors to help the Bears’ cause.
The Bears had four aces by the time the third set was tied 12-12 before Ibarguen took over, scoring six kills down the stretch and nine overall in the set without an error.
MSU held a 40-26 lead in kills and hit .218 as a team. The Bears out-dug the Skyhawks 64-58 with Polcovich scooping a team-high 17.
The Bears head back to the Natural State next weekend for matches with Memphis, Central Arkansas and Little Rock Sept. 3-4 at UCA’s campus in Conway.