HENDERSON — The annual Labor Day Classic was a boon for the Freed-Hardeman University Lady Lions. Not only did FHU compete in Henderson for just the second time in the season, FHU secured three wins in straight sets before falling in the final match in five.
On Friday, the Lady Lions defeated Brescia (Ky.) Bearcats 3-0 (25-18, 25-16, 25-22) before toppling the Tougaloo (Miss.) College Bulldogs 3-0 (25-9, 25-9, 25-11). Saturday began with a sweep of Williams Baptist (Ark.) University 3-0 (25-23, 25-12, 25-16) before the final match of the weekend was a loss to Faulkner (Ala.) University 3-2 (16-25, 25-19, 24-26, 25-23, 15-10).
Match 1
Brescia - 0
Freed-Hardeman 3
The biggest storyline of the weekend opener for FHU (4-6) was seeing sophomore
Marija Milic record her career's 100th service ace. In the first set, the Lady Lions more than doubled Brescia's kills total with FHU slamming down 17 to Brescia's eight.
Olivia Saint led FHU's attack against the Bearcats (4-5) with 10 kills. Hanae Bezerga and
Becca Heineman shared a team-high 11 digs in the win.
Match 2
Tougaloo - 0
Freed-Hardeman - 3
Freed-Hardeman's (5-6) serving prowess shone through with FHU tallying 19 service aces in the sweep. Not just getting points off the serve, the Lady Lions registered their highest attack percentage of the season, hitting .321 on the night.
12 of the 15 Lady Lions to hit the floor against Tougaloo (0-7) connected for kills with
Morgan Jackson's nine leading the way.
Becca Heineman had a team-high seven aces, while
Cate Schroer ended the match with five.
Match 3
Williams Baptist - 0
Freed-Hardeman - 3
The night's rest was beneficial to the Lady Lions (6-6), who woke up to double the Lady Eagles' kill total in the match with 45 kills to WBU's 21. FHU dominated every statistical category, including 62.0 points compared to Williams Baptist's 27.0.
Teodora Dacic had the heavy hand in the victory over the Eagles (5-8), racking up 14 kills in the sweep.
Alyssa Austin had pinpoint accuracy from the service line, finishing the night with five aces.
Match 4
Faulkner - 3
Freed-Hardeman - 2
After three sweeps, the Lady Lions (6-7) returned to familiar territory with their sixth five-set match of the season. FHU had a fantastic first set with 13 kills while swinging .500. After falling in the second set, the Lady Lions answered with a match-high 15 kills in the third set that required extra points. Faulkner rallied to win the fourth and fifth sets.
For the second straight match,
Teodora Dacic smacked a team-high 14 kills.
Marija Cabadaj was right behind her with a season-high 13 kills. Hanae Bezerga had her season's best night on the back row, pulling up 23 digs.
Up Next
It's back on the road for the Lady Lions who will compete their next three matches as the guests. First up is a trip to Central Baptist (Ark.) College on September 11 with a first serve set for 2:00 p.m. from Conway, Arkansas.
