The No. 25 Texas A&M volleyball team swept Arkansas at Reed Arena on Friday night. The 3-0 victory extended the Aggies’ win streak to six, as well as giving them their longest SEC win streak since the 2016 season.
Senior outside hitter Hollann Hans ran the stat sheet as she led the game with 13 kills, 10 digs and 14 points, for her eighth double-double of the season. Junior middle blocker Makena Patterson tallied nine kills, eight blocks, three assists and 13.5 points while freshman opposite hitter Treyaunna Rush added eight kills, four blocks and 10 points in her performance.
Patterson said the team’s recent success is a testament to the hard work they’ve put into practice.
“We’ve just been really focusing on momentum this year, that’s a huge word for us,” Patterson said. “Because we do have the momentum right now and it feels so great, but even when we realize that it’s shifting a little bit, we just have to bring it back to our side. And I think that’s been a huge part of our success, too.”
A&M coach Laura “Bird” Kuhn said Patterson’s effort on Friday proved to be a game-changer, as she has already been leading up to this point of the season.
“It’s her mindset,” Kuhn said. “And she’s learned how to balance herself and know that if she’s not on offensively that she needs to turn around and be there blocking-wise, defensively…She’s just consistent enough where she’s playing both sides and she’s finding ways to score.”
To open the match and first set, Patterson and Rush notched a couple of blocks at the net while Hans marked her first kill, adding up to a 4-0 lead that they soon extended to 10-3. The Aggies continued to dominate the set for a 25-10 win.
Throughout the second set, Kuhn said the Aggies allowed Arkansas to hang on a bit too long as they committed multiple attack and service errors. However, A&M was able to find a rhythm and close out the set 25-18.
“There were stretches early in the season where we could bleed errors, easily,” Kuhn said. “It happened in the second set, a little bit, but they figured it out. They felt it and they changed it…You have to recognize it early and that’s what we want. We want them to be able to do that on the court and they’re starting to do that.”
The Aggies’ start to the third set was a lot like the first, as they set themselves out to an early 3-0 lead following a kill from Rush. After Arkansas was able to pull within one, three consecutive kills from Hans forced the Razorbacks into a timeout after the score was at 7-2. A&M did not allow the Razorbacks to get within five points through the rest of the set. The 25-13 set closed on back-to-back Arkansas attack errors to allow the Aggies to clinch the sweep.
After the match, Hans said while the team is pleased with its most recent match results, the Aggies keep looking to what’s ahead for them as the season goes on.
“It’s been really awesome,” Hans said. “We’re just super happy with the win, but we’re already looking forward to LSU, so I think just playing one game at a time has been the biggest thing for us. We’re just ready for the next one and we’re thankful.”
The Aggies will visit Baton Rouge, Louisiana as they take on the LSU Tigers on Sunday at 3 p.m. in the Pete Maravich Assembly Center.