HAMMOND, La. – ULM Volleyball split its matches in the Battle for the Boot on Friday, sweeping Southern, 3-0 (25-15, 25-14, 25-19), and falling at the hands of Southeastern, 3-0 (21-25, 22-25, 16-25). The final match in the tournament is set for 10 a.m. Saturday vs. Northwestern State.
In the first match of the day, the Warhawks had a hitting percentage of .316 and had eight service aces in the victory.
Brynn Botkin tallied 12 kills and
Madeline Williams nine to lead ULM.
Cameron Rogers and
Taylor Thomas topped the defensive effort for the Warhawks with five digs each. Rogers had five of ULM's eight service aces, two back-to-back to help ULM pull away from a 17-15 lead to a 25-15 final in the third set. Her five aces set a ULM record for a three-set match in the 25-point rally scoring era.
ULM hit .536 in the second set with 16 kills and only one error. Southern struggled offensively overall, hitting only .113 for the match, but had a .308 hitting percentage in the second match.
Williams led the Warhawks in kills (7), service aces (2) and blocks (2) in the second match, sharing team-high honors with
Kailey Friedrich in aces (2) and
Logan Jeffus in the blocks category (2). Rogers tied
Callie Humphrey with seven digs for the team best.
Despite tough offensive showings in the first two sets, ULM battled back to trim the deficit to one point on two occasions late in the first set and fought for a two-point lead in set two. Southeastern reeled off four-straight points to regain the lead. The Warhawks tied the set at 22-all before the Lions scored the final three points.
