WVU Battles in Five Set Match

Friday, November 19

Morgantown, W.Va.

6:00 p.m.

West Virginia University

17-9,6-8Big 12

Texas Tech

17-10,7-7Big 12

Texas Tech

West Virginia

Photo by: Rylan Nemesh

November 19, 2021 10:13 PM | Volleyball

Box Score

By: Lindsay Auld

MORGANTOWN, W. Va. – The West Virginia University volleyball team fell to Texas Tech on Friday evening, in Morgantown, West Virginia, at the WVU Coliseum. The Mountaineers (17-9, 6-8 Big 12) could not overcome the Red Raiders (17-10, 7-7 Big 12) in set scores of 22-25, 25-23,25-20,23-25 and 15-11.

"It is tough," coach Reed Sunahara said. "It is tough losing at home. I thought we battled, but not enough. Hats off to Tech. They came in and took two from us. It is unfortunate for us, but we still have two more matches to go. We got to keep getting better."

West Virginia was led by three Mountaineers who recorded double-doubles, including senior setter Lacey Zerwas, who recorded 41 assists and 17 digs, while fifth-year senior libero Alexa Hasting tallied 26 digs and 11 assists.

Fifth-year senior outside hitter Adrian Ell also recorded a double-double, with 17 kills and 10 digs.

Additionally, four Mountaineers recorded double-digit scores, including senior outside hitter Kristin Lux who recorded 17 kills, and fifth-year senior middle blocker Briana Lynch with 11 kills.

Senior outside hitter Natali Petrova added 15 digs, while sophomore outside hitter Skye Stokes recorded 12 digs. Stokes also tallied six service aces.

WVU finished the match hitting .134, with a match-high 63 kills. The Mountaineers recorded 10 team blocks and 59 assists.

Texas Tech opened set one with an early 7-2 lead. The Mountaineers went on a 3-0 scoring run and continued to score, bringing the set to 10-9, with Texas Tech holding the lead. An ace from Stokes tied the set 13-13, and the teams traded points. WVU took the lead after Ell tallied a kill, 16-15. A few scoring runs extended the Mountaineer's lead, 22-18. Stokes served up an ace for a set point, 24-20. TTU held on for two more points, but WVU took set one 25-22.

The Red Raiders open the set 2-0, but the Mountaineers fired back with two of their own. Texas Tech used a few scoring runs to secure a lead,7-4, and continued to hold the lead to the media timeout, 15-12. Following the timeout, WVU added two points and was down by one. After traded points, WVU tied the set 18-18. The Mountaineers used a 3-0 scoring run to take the lead and force a TTU timeout, 21-19. Texas Tech took back the lead, 23-21, but WVU fought back and tied the set. Ultimately, the Red Raiders claimed set two, 25-23.

A 4-1 lead opened the third set for Texas Tech. The Mountaineers brought the score to 8-7. A 3-0 scoring run for WVU gave them a 10-9 lead, but TTU went on a 4-0 scoring run to take back the lead,13-10. The Red Raiders continued to hold an edge throughout the set, 23-19, and the Mountaineers called a timeout. TTU took set three, 25-20 and led the match 2-1.

Texas Tech opened the fourth set, but WVU took a 3-2 lead. The teams traded points. The Red Raiders took the lead, 13-11, but the Mountaineers fought back and tied the set. The set reached a media timeout, with TTU holding the lead, 15-13. A 5-0 Mountaineer scoring run, including a pair of service aces from Stokes, tied the set, 18-18. The teams traded the lead, but WVU used a 4-0 scoring run to take the fourth set, 25-23.

The Mountaineers opened set five, 2-0. The teams traded points, but Texas Tech tied it, 5-5. After a few alternating points, the Red Raiders took back the lead, 11-8. West Virginia fought hard but could not overcome Texas Tech, who took the set, 15-11.

Next up, West Virginia will close its 2021 fall slate in Fort Worth, Texas, as the Mountaineers take on the Horned Frogs, at Schollmaier Arena, in a two-match series, on Nov. 26-27. Both contests are set to begin at 7:30 p.m. ET.

For more information on the Mountaineers, visit WVUsports.com and follow WVU Volleyball on Twitter, Instagram and Facebook.