SILOAM SPRINGS, Ark. -- The John Brown University volleyball team shook off another slow opening set Saturday afternoon (Sept. 19), overwhelming Oklahoma Panhandle State over the final three frames to earn a four-set victory (22-25, 25-15, 25-16, 25-11) inside Bill George Arena.

John Brown (7-7, 3-3 Sooner Athletic) responded to the opening-frame setback by hitting .352 (41-9-91) over the final three games while holding the Aggies to .011 (21-20-91).

Junior Tessa Medina also reached a career milestone during the victory, surpassing 1,000 career assists to become the 14th player in program history during the rally-scoring era to reach the mark. Medina finished the afternoon with 22 assists, 12 digs and two service aces.

The Golden Eagles finished the afternoon attacking at a .269 clip (53-17-134), and kept the visiting Aggies to just .059 (32-24-135). JBU also held advantages in aces (10-7), digs (69-55) and blocks (7-5).

The Blue and Gold produced a much more varied attack after improving its first-ball contact from Friday night's loss to Wayland Baptist (Texas). Senior Akayla Kador, sophomore Reese Montgomery and freshman Whitley Underdown combined for 18 kills on 34 attempts (4 errors), hitting .412 as a group. Kador put away four kills on five swings (.800), Montgomery finished at .500 (7-1-12), and Underdown added seven kills at a .235 clip.

Sophomore Olivia Tucker again provided production from the right side, finishing with a match-high 11 kills while hitting .348 (11-3-23). Sophomore Kate Carlson added 10 kills on .296 hitting and three service aces, while sophomore Clara Hyke put away six kills without an error on 11 swings (.545).

John Brown also received contributions from all three setters. Medina's 22 assists led the group, sophomore Taylor Kosmicki added 13 and freshman Chloe Hooper handed out five. The Golden Eagles finished with 47 assists on 53 kills.

Sophomore Paige Addington led JBU in the back row with 16 digs while landing a match-high four service aces. Addington, freshman Emily Whitten and senior Mia Bowman handled the majority of Panhandle State's serve-receive opportunities without committing a personal reception error, helping the Golden Eagles establish the first-ball contact that had been missing the night before.

"Another great bounce-back win this afternoon against a very scrappy OPSU team," head coach Ken Carver noted. "We got off to another slow start, but our players showed the grit, determination and character they've shown all year in working to turn the momentum back to our side of the court. Even though our comeback in the first set fell short, I thought it went a long way toward jump-starting the rest of the afternoon for us. We were better with our first-ball contact and more aggressive from the service line, and that allowed us to play much more like ourselves offensively.

"I was also pleased with the decisions we made offensively and the way our players took advantage of the opportunities they were given. We did a much better job of siding out quickly and keeping control of the momentum once we got it."

Panhandle State (2-7, 2-4) was paced by Tanner Robinson, who finished with 11 kills and three service aces. Marielle Gonzalez added nine terminations while hitting .240, and Jordyn Carpenter contributed seven kills and a team-high 14 digs.

Set 1: Panhandle State controlled the opening stages, using a five-point run to turn a 2-1 advantage into a 7-1 lead before eventually stretching the margin to 14-5. John Brown began its first comeback there, scoring six consecutive points behind Medina's serve to pull within 14-11. Medina landed an ace during the run while junior Federica Ferrari supplied two kills.

OPSU rebuilt the margin to 17-11 and still led 19-14 before the Golden Eagles produced their biggest surge of the frame. An Aggie service error began the run, and Montgomery continued what would amount to an eight-point JBU run with a kill. Carlson followed with three terminations during the stretch and Tucker added another as John Brown stormed all the way in front, 22-19. A Tucker solo rejection completed the run and forced the Aggies into their second timeout.

The comeback stopped just short, however, of producing the set. Panhandle State scored the final six points, with Tanner Robinson contributing a kill and three service aces during the closing run. Her final two aces ended the frame and gave the Aggies a 25-22 victory.

Set 2: The hosts carried the momentum of its first-set comeback into the second. After Underdown tied the frame at 2-2, Addington took over from the service line. The sophomore landed four aces during a six-point service turn, while Carlson added a kill and OPSU committed an attack error as the Golden Eagles surged ahead 8-2.

The Aggies never seriously threatened the advantage. Tucker delivered consecutive kills to extend the margin to 11-6, and John Brown continued pulling away behind a balanced attack. Bowman later added an ace, Carlson supplied another, and Day closed the frame with a kill for the 25-15 victory.

JBU hit .407 (13-2-27) in the set and landed six service aces, turning the match decisively after hitting just .093 in the opener.

Set 3: The third remained tight through a 5-5 tie before John Brown gradually began separating itself. Montgomery and Tucker helped fuel a four-point stretch that moved the Golden Eagles in front 8-5, and JBU later used another three-point push to extend the advantage to 12-7.

OPSU trimmed the margin to 12-10, but the Golden Eagles consistently answered before the Aggies could get closer. Hyke and Carlson supplied kills during a three-point run that made it 16-11, while Montgomery later combined a kill and a block with Carlson during another surge that pushed the lead to 22-14.

Tucker and Underdown helped finish the frame as John Brown scored the final three points for a 25-16 win. The Golden Eagles held OPSU to negative hitting in the set, as the Aggies finished at -.059 (7-9-34).

Set 4: John Brown never trailed in the clincher. The Golden Eagles scored the opening point before OPSU tied the frame at 1-1, and JBU immediately reclaimed the advantage on consecutive Hyke kills. The set featured only that one tie and no lead changes.

Kador helped JBU begin creating separation through the middle of the frame, putting down three kills as the advantage grew to 11-7. After OPSU scored once more, the Golden Eagles rattled off five straight points to move ahead 15-7, with Montgomery finishing the five-point surge with a kill.

John Brown continued accelerating from there. Tucker delivered three consecutive terminations as the lead reached 19-9, and Kador later added her fourth kill before Day helped the Golden Eagles reach match point. An OPSU attack error finished the 25-11 victory.

The Golden Eagles hit .433 (15-2-30) in the final set and successfully sided out on all 12 opportunities, never allowing the Aggies to score consecutive points while serving.

"Earning the split on the weekend was important, but being able to secure the win when one of your players reaches a significant career milestone makes it even sweeter," added Carver.

"Congratulations to Tessa on surpassing 1,000 career assists and to our entire team for earning an important win."

The Blue and Gold will finish its three-match homestand inside Bill George Arena Tuesday evening (Sept. 22) and host College of the Ozarks (Mo.) at 6 p.m. The Urban Edge Network and the SAC Sports Network will both carry the action live.

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