BATON ROUGE — The LSU volleyball team swept a pair of matches in the Hurricane Frances Invitational against Central Florida, 30-21, 30-18, 22-30, 30-21, and Rice, 30-25, 25- 30, 36-34, 17-30, 15-9, to open the season on Saturday afternoon in the Maravich Center.
The Tigers improved to 2-0 on the season, while Central Florida fell to 0-2 after losses to LSU and Rice. The Owls moved to 2-1 on the year after splitting matches with the Tigers and the Golden Knights. The tournament will conclude with a single match on Sunday at 11 a.m. as LSU faces Central Florida for a second time.
“This was a great way for us to start the season,” said LSU head coach Fran Flory. “These are two very good teams and we are very pleased to come away with two wins. They were both hard fought matches and we had to battle through some adversity. I thought the way we came back after being behind in the fourth game against Rice was a turning point for us and helped us to push through and take the match.”
In the first match, the Tigers defeated Central Florida, 3-1. LSU took the first two games before dropping the third. The Tigers closed out the match by taking the fourth game.
Regan Hood led the match with 17 kills, while hitting at a .394 clip and adding six blocks and eight digs. Ivana Kuzmic and Kassi Mikulik each had 11 kills for the Tigers. Kuzmic added six blocks and hit at a match-high .409 clip, while Mikulik led the match with 16 digs, recording her fourth collegiate double-double.
Michelle Hensgens and Jelena Mijatovic also recorded in double figures for digs, posting 13 and 11 respectively, while Melody Clark added four blocks. Central Florida was led by Emily Watts with 13 kills and 12 digs, while Tanya Jarvis had 10 kills and 11 digs. Amanda Stoutjesdyk led the match with seven blocks.
Against Rice in the evening match, LSU came back to win 3-2. The Tigers won the first game and the third game, while the Owls took the second game. In the fourth game, LSU trailed 21-3 before a 10-3 run by the Tigers cut the Rice lead to 24-13, but could not get any closer. In the fifth game, LSU went on a 9-3 run to break a 6-6 tie and win the match.
Mijatovic led the team with 18 kills, one of four players in double figures with kills. Hood added 17 kills and 14 digs for her first double-double of the season. Clark and Mikulik added 14 and 13 kills respectively.
Daniela Romero also recorded a double-double, posting 54 assists and a team-best 22 digs. Kuzmic knocked back a match-best nine blocks, including four solo blocks. Rachel Pittman and Hensgens also recorded double-figure dig totals with 15 and 12 each.
Owl Lindsey Carter led the match with 25 digs, while Rebeca Pazo added 15. Five Rice players were in double-figures with digs, including Olaya Pazo and Yvette Kirk with 22 and 20 respectively. Tessa Kuykendall posted eight blocks to lead the Owls.
The Tigers will travel to the Texas Invitational next weekend in Austin for meetings with the University of Texas, Liberty and Louisiana Tech.
LSU def. Central Florida 30-21, 30-18, 22-30, 30-21
Central Florida (0-2) (Kills-aces-blocks) – Emily Watts 13-0-2; Tanya Jarvis 10-2-3; Schanell Neiderworde 5-0-4; Amanda Stoutjesdyk 4-0-7; Maureen Perez 4-1-0; Jana Mitchell 3-0-2; Michelle Spaleta 0-3-0; Chaz Arah 0-0-2; Totals 39-6-10.0. (Assists) – Katie Kohnen 17. (Dig leaders) – Michelle Spaleta 12; Emily Watts 12; Tanya Jarvis 11
LSU (1-0) (Kills-aces-blocks) – Regan Hood 17-0-6; Ivana Kuzmic 11-0-6; Kassi Mikulik 11-0-1; Jelena Mijatovic 9-2-3; Melody Clark 7-0-4; Mina Spasojevic 4-0-0; Daniela Romero 3-2-2; Totals 62-4-12.0. (Assists) – Daniela Romero 39. (Dig leaders) – Kassi Mikulik 16; Michelle Hensgens 13; Jelena Mijatovic 11; Rachel Pittman 9; Regan Hood 8
Rice def. Central Florida 30-15,30-19,30-25
Central Florida (0-2) (Kills-aces-blocks) – Tanya Jarvis 9-0-2; Emily Watts 8-3-1; Amanda Stoutjesdyk 7-0-4; Jana Mitchell 6-0-1; Kristin Mondientz 2-0-1; Schanell Neiderworde 1-0-1; Maureen Perez 0-1-0; Totals 33-4-5.0. (Assists) – Maureen Perez 13; Katie Kohnen 10. (Dig leaders) – Michelle Spaleta 16; Emily Watts 15; Katie Kohnen 9
Rice (2-0) (Kills-aces-blocks) – Carter, Lindsey 8-0-3; Pazo, Olaya 8-1-3; Kainz, Rebecca 8-0-3; Pazo, Rebeca 8-0-1; Kuykendall, Tessa 4-0-8; Hoban, Kristina 4-0-1; Totals 40-1-12.0. (Assists) – Hoban Kristina 28. (Dig leaders) – Hoban, Kristina 15; Kirk, Yvette 12; Carter, Lindsey 10
LSU def. Rice 30-25,25-30,36-34,17-30,15-9
RICE (2-1) (Kills-aces-blocks) – Carter, Lindsey 25-1-3; Pazo, Rebeca 15-2-1; Pazo, Olaya 9-3-5; Kuykendall, Tessa 8-0-8; Hoban, Kristina 6-2-2; Kainz, Rebecca 6-2-2; Totals 69-10-11.0. (Assists) – Hoban, Kristina 54. (Dig leaders) – Pazo, Olaya 22; Kirk, Yvette 20; Hoban, Kristina 13; Carter, Lindsey 13; Pazo, Rebeca 11
LSU (2-0) (Kills-aces-blocks) – Jelena Mijatovic 18-1-0; Regan Hood 17-0-1; Melody Clark 14-0-3; Kassi Mikulik 13-1-1; Ivana Kuzmic 8-0-9; Daniela Romero 4-2-3; Lauren Leaumont 1-0-0; Michelle Hensgens 0-2-0; Rachel Pittman 0-1-0; Totals 75-7-11.0. (Assists) – Daniela Romero 54. (Dig leaders) – Daniela Romero 22; Rachel Pittman 15; Regan Hood 14; Michelle Hensgens 12; Jelena Mijatovic 9