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HOUSTON, Texas – Idaho State completed play at the Cougar Classic Saturday, Sept. 3 with a 3-1 win over Texas Southern. The Bengals struggled offensively in the win, hitting just .100 for 42 kills, but they were solid defensively as four different players recorded double-digit digs and five players recorded at least two blocks.
Sophomore setter
Ashlyn Van Every stepped up big for the Bengals, recording her first career double-double with a match-high 23 assists to go along with 13 digs, both of which are career highs. Van Every, along with junior middle blocker
Marissa Todd, sophomore outside hitter
Abby Jensen, and freshman libero
Haylie Keck all recorded double-digit kills as Todd collected 13, and Jensen and Keck each added 10.
"This was a great team effort," Head Coach
Rick Reynolds said. "Ashlyn came in and did a great job of running the offense, and she played great defense for us. A few other players stepped up big for us;
Nicole Lee picked up some experience and came up big for us in the last set, and I thought Kayla [Ledezma] and Alexis [Patten] provided stability for us on defense."
In the first set, Idaho State (4-3) and Texas Southern (2-5) were tied 11-all midway through until a kill from Jensen and a TSU error gave the Bengals a two-point lead. ISU never relinquished its lead and went on to win the first set 25-18.
In the second set, the Bengals rushed out to a 10-4 lead behind three ISU kills and multiple TSU errors, but Texas Southern stormed back, capitalizing on four-straight ISU errors to cut the lead to one, 11-10. The Bengals responded with a 5-0 run, fueled by two-straight kills from freshman
Nicole Lee. However, throughout the set, the Bengals struggled to connect at the net, suffering a dismal -.108 hitting percentage, registering just seven kills on 37 attempts with 11 errors. Texas Southern capitalized, finished the set on a 15-5 run to claim the second set 25-20.
After the break, Idaho State fell behind 7-2 early, but quickly tied the set 9-all following four Bengal kills coupled with a few TSU errors. The Bengals hit .226 for the set for 11 kills off 31 attempts and cruised to the third set win, 25-20.
In the fourth set, the score was tied 10-all until the Bengals capped a 7-1 run fueled by two ISU kills and five TSU errors to lead 17-11. Idaho State never let TSU within three points and held on for the 25-19 fourth set win and the 3-1 match win.
Audriana Carson and Kali Fluke led Texas Southern with 12 and 11 kills respectively, while Allison Woods recorded a match-high 20 digs.
With the win, the Bengals went undefeated in the Cougar Classic, claiming the outright tournament title.
"We are excited to win the tournament," Reynolds said. "It's important for us to get back to work and build on this in preparation for this week."
Idaho State returns home for its home tournament, the Idaho State Invitational, Sept. 8-10. The Bengals open play Thursday, Sept. 8 against Boise State at 7 p.m.
