SILOAM SPRINGS -- In a true battle of fourth and fifth place teams in the conference, the fourth-seeded John Brown University volleyball squad had its season end on Tuesday (April 6) evening in the Sooner Athletic tournament quarterfinals as fifth-seeded Southwestern A.G. (Texas) escaped Siloam Springs with a second win in five days inside Bill George Arena.
The Golden Eagles (11-4) close out the 2020 season falling in two of its final three home contests after piecing together a 15-match winning streak in Siloam Springs that spanned three calendar years.
While John Brown did a better job limiting Alexis Mealer (17 kills), Abby Wells (16) and Ava Myers (10) each produced double-digit termination nights in what was nearly a statistically even matchup throughout the four sets.
In the fourth set, the Lions (11-6) broke open a six-all tie and went on a 12-4 run to build an 18-10 lead. Three solo blocks – two from senior Jaden Williams and a third from sophomore Ellie Lampton – fueled a response rally with John Brown's season on the line. A 10-4 response pulled the hosts within two, 22-20, but a pair of Abby Wells kills finished the match as the squads traded points to finish the set.
The match featured 18 ties, seven in the third set, and nine lead changes – three each in the final three sets.
"While we are disappointed with the final result of the match, I couldn't be more proud of how we kept persevering in the match on a night when nothing seemed to come easy for our team," head coach Ken Carver noted. "I'm especially proud of the grit they showed in set four – how they battled back and gave themselves an opportunity to force a fifth set. While the overall statistics between both teams were very similar, once again, we struggled tonight to string points together for the majority of the match and play at the tempo and style we normally want to.
"As a result, I feel SAGU was the more consistently aggressive team throughout the match and was dictating how it was being played. With both of our teams as evenly matched as they are, that confidence and consistency was all they needed to be more successful on the court and earn the win."
John Brown again started strong – hitting nearly .300 through the first two sets – but then trailed off to finish at .220 (58-21-168) on the evening. SAGU retaliated with a .325 mark in sets two and three and won the battle of attrition in the fourth to end the evening hitting .255 (59-20-153).
Lampton finished with 15 kills, hitting .303, and added a pair of blocks. Freshman Delaney Barnes continued to deliver in the second half of the season, contributing 11 kills on 35 swings.
On defense, Williams finished with 4 rejections, three of the solo variety, while junior Jenna Lowery led all Golden Eagles with 18 digs. SAGU did a good job of avoiding sophomore and three-time SAC Defender of the Week Jillian Blackman, as she produced just 17 scoops and added eight assists, keeping John Brown out of system.
While this year's edition of JBU volleyball was more on the younger side, our youth developed over the fall offseason and played well beyond their years throughout the course of our COVID-shortened season," added Carver. "Our success was built on the relational investments our players made in each other as well as their commitment to the process of improving each time they stepped on the court together. To that end, I feel our team was extremely successful and played at or near our potential for the majority of the season.
"We will greatly miss the leadership, encouragement and energy Taylor [Glover] and Jaden [Williams] brought as our seniors to our team, and moving forward we want to wish them God's blessings on their future endeavors. For the family members, friends and students who supported our team, whether in person or online, we want to say thank you for your encouragement and support."
FOLLOW THE GOLDEN EAGLES
Don't miss a minute of the latest action surrounding JBU Athletics by following the Golden Eagles on Twitter (@JBUathletics), Instagram (@JBUathletics) and Facebook (/JBUathletics). Also, don't forget to download the SAC Sports Network app on your favorite streaming device. All Golden Eagle home events, and select away contests, are streamed on the SACSN.
