West Virginia (7-3) wrapped up the non-conference portion of its schedule by going 3-0 in the UNT Invitational in Denton, Texas. The Mountaineers opened with a 3-1 win over East Texas A&M, followed it up with a 3-1 victory over host North Texas, and capped the weekend with a straight-set sweep of Tarleton State. Their next game is on Friday, September 25, at Hope Coliseum at 6 p.m. against Arizona State. It is the first Big 12 match of the season. Read more: WVU Volleyball sweeps UNT Invitational.
Game 1: West Virginia 3, East Texas A&M 1
West Virginia opened Thursday with a 25-17, 21-25, 25-21, 25-20 win over East Texas A&M. Sophomore Anna Barr, playing in her home state of Texas, put on a show with 17 kills on 26 attempts, hitting .577 to go with two blocks. Nina Horning backed her up with 14 kills.
The Mountaineers controlled the first set, turning a 2-5 deficit into an 8-5 lead. They went on a 6-0 run and never looked back. East Texas A&M answered in the second, hitting .375 as a team to even the match.
Related: Setting the Scene: WVU, Virginia meet again with Charlotte setting the stage
WVU regained control in the third, building a 15-10 cushion on three Barr kills and a Cassidy Burns ace. The Lions rallied, but the Mountaineers held them off to close it out, 25-21. The fourth set saw WVU jump ahead 6-2, and extend it to 12-6 before an East Texas A&M timeout. Freshman Macie Smith delivered the match-clinching kill to seal the 25-10 win.
Alexis Finnvold ran the offense with 36 assists, while Reagan Turk paced the defense with 20 digs. As a team, WVU hit .244 and held East Texas A&M to .184.
Game 2: West Virginia 3, North Texas 1
WVU followed up Friday night with a 25-23, 20-25, 25-22, 25-12 victory over host North Texas. Horning led all players with 15 kills, Barr added 12 on .333 hitting, Maddy McGath chipped in eight kills on a scorching .571 clip, and Trinity Sheridan added seven kills while hitting .429.
The Mountaineers rallied from a tied 22-22 score in the first set. A Horning kill, a Turk ace, and a Barr kill closed it out. North Texas answered with a 10-5 run in the second set to even the match.
The third set was tight throughout. There were 15 ties and four lead changes before WVU closed on a 5-0 run after trailing 22-20. Horning delivered the final two kills of the frame to put the Mountaineers up 2-1. West Virginia took over in the fourth. They had two separate 5-0 runs and closed the match on six of the final eight points. The Mountaineers hit .524 in the set alone.
Finnvold posted 29 assists, freshman Lauren Duncan added 16 off the bench, and Turk led the defense again with 16 digs. West Virginia had 10 service aces in the match.
Game 3: West Virginia 3, Tarleton State 0
West Virginia closed out the UNT Invitational Saturday with a straight-set sweep of Tarleton State to finish unbeaten on the trip. They beat them 25-23, 25-22, and 25-21.
Horning and Barr again led the way, each finishing with 10 kills. Horning hit .308 and added three aces, while Barr posted a .409 hitting percentage on 22 attempts. Sheridan added nine kills on a .438 clip. Finnvold directed the offense with 19 assists, and McGath was dominant at the net. She had five kills to go with a team-high six blocks. Mirjam Karoliine Kask and Horning each chipped in four blocks as WVU out-blocked Tarleton State 10-3 on the afternoon.
Related: WVU’s late goal against Baylor keeps undefeated season alive
The Mountaineers opened the first set with an early 3-0 lead before the Texans battled back to tie it at 13. WVU never let go of the lead from there, getting a Horning kill and a Texans attack error to move ahead 24-21. McGath closed it out with a kill for a 25-23 win.
The second set was the tightest of the day. The teams went back-and-forth before Barr and Smith delivered back-to-back kills to put WVU ahead 21-19. WVU closed it out on three straight blocks to seal the set. They carried that momentum into the third and final set, jumping out to a 9-3 lead. Tarleton State trimmed the lead to 22-20 late, but it was too late. A Finnvold ace closed out the set and the match.
Stay up to date with WV Sports Nation for more WVU Athletics coverage by downloading the WV Sports Nation app.
