FAYETTEVILLE, Ark. – The Hogs not only played their first NCAA Tournament match at Barnhill Arena in 17 years on Friday, but also got their first-ever NCAA Tournament win on home court in 25 years as Arkansas made quick work of Stephen F. Austin with a 3-0 sweep.
The Hogs have now swept their opening NCAA Tournament matches in consecutive seasons, and it’s one of only four NCAA sweeps at Barnhill Arena in the program’s 30 seasons.
Graduate outside hitter Jill Gillen led the way for the Razorbacks with 19 kills and hit .333 on 42 swings. Fellow graduate outside Maggie Cartwright posted a double-double for Arkansas with 14 kills and a team-high 19 digs, and had two service aces. Junior setter Hannah Hogue contributed 38 assists and two service aces, along with two blocks.
Arkansas saw 3,847 fans in attendance in Friday’s NCAA opener, now the second-highest ever.
The third-seeded Razorbacks now take on TCU in the NCAA second round on Saturday at 7 p.m. at Barnhill. The winner will advance to the Lincoln Regional next weekend. The match has been deemed a Red Out, and tickets are on sale through the Razorback Ticket Center.
Set 1
The first set started out back-and-forth until Arkansas broke through with a five-point run highlighted by two Cartwright aces for a 9-3 lead. The Jacks took a timeout and tacked on two more points shortly after, but the Hogs put their foot on the gas and rattled off 10 straight points with eight kills by Gillen, which made it 20-5 and prompted an SFA timeout. The Jacks got one out of the break, but the Razorbacks responded with a 5-0 run with two aces from Hogue to push it to set point. SFA added two more points, but a final kill from Gillen made it 25-8 and closed the set for the Hogs.
Set 2
SFA jumped out to a 3-1 lead early, but the Razorbacks used a four-point run to flip the script and went up 5-3. They continued to grow the lead from there and back-to-back aces from Taylor Head pushed it to an 11-5 advantage for the home team. Arkansas led by as many as seven as the Hogs approached 20 points and came within three of victory with a block from Hogue and Zoi Evans. The Jacks made it to 17, but Arkansas finished the second with kills from Cartwright and Head for the 25-17 win and a 2-0 match lead.
Set 3
The third set looked to be much of the same as the Hogs grabbed a 7-4 lead. SFA wouldn’t go quietly though as the Jacks came within one at 10-9, to which the Razorbacks responded with three straight points and SFA called time. From there, the Jacks started to settle in and tied it at 13-all, but the Hogs added four skills, two from Cartwright, and went up 17-14. SFA huddled again and cut the deficit to one shortly after, but a Gillen kill kept it at 21-19. The Jacks found a late rhythm though and regained a 22-21 lead, which sent the Razorbacks to a timeout. It boosted Arkansas enough to push it to 24-23, but the Jacks spoiled set and match point with a kill. Cartwright then responded with her 14th kill for the 25-23 set victory and secured the sweep.
More Information
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