COMMERCE– The Texas A&M University-Commerce volleyball team knocked off Eastern New Mexico in four sets on Saturday afternoon. The set scores were 25-21, 25-16, 23-25, and 25-13.
 
The win brings the Lions to 22-5 on the season and 14-2 in the Lone Star Conference. The Greyhounds fall to 4-20 and 2-14 in conference play.
 
The Lions return to action next week in the final week of the regular season. The Lions will face their travel partner UT Tyler in a home-and-home series. The teams will meet in Tyler on Friday at 6 p.m. and will then meet at the Field House in Commerce on Saturday at 2 p.m.
 
Tickets to Lion Volleyball home matches can be purchased by visiting WeAreLionsTix.com, by calling (903) 468-8756, or by visiting the Lion Sales & Service Box Office inside the Field House during business hours.
 
HEAD COACH CRAIG CASE AFTER THE MATCH
- On the leadership: "I thought today was an extension of yesterday in terms of our leadership being a driving force in us being successful. I thought between our captains and our seniors, I thought they were pretty critical. When things weren't going well, I thought they were the ones to get things going."
- On the production in the middle: "Shelley continues to perform extremely well and Bina played extremely well this weekend as well. Anytime we can get those two going, that opens things up for everybody else."
- On the defense: "I thought we really cranked up the defense in those second and fourth sets. I thought when we weren't disruptive with our block, I thought our back row was really good. I thought Savannah was really good all weekend. Today was no exception."
 
INSIDE THE BOX SCORE
- Shelley Chapron (Houston – St. Pius X) led the team with 17 kills, hitting .500 in the match. She also led the defense with six blocks.
- Bina Njikam (Keller) had 10 kills, hitting .471 in the match.
- Savannah Rutledge (The Woodlands – College Park) had 18 digs and four assists.
- Celeste Vela (Guadalajara, Mexico) led the offense with 27 assists to go with six digs. Natalie Sarbeck (Cypress – Cy-Fair) added 19 assists and had a double-double with 12 digs.
- Riley Davidson (Commerce) also had 12 digs and two aces while Daniela Santos (Caracas, Venezuela) had 11 digs and a team-high three aces.
- The Lions hit .264 as a team, while holding ENMU to a .139 hitting percentage.
 
HOW IT HAPPENED
The Lions got off to a hot start, taking six of the first eight points of the match. The Greyhounds rallied back, cutting the Lion lead to 13-12. The teams then proceeded to trade points until the Lions responded late, taking five of the final seven points to win the set 25-21.
 
The Lions again started well to begin the second set, winning seven of the first 10 points. Another huge Lion run of 10-2 gave A&M-Commerce a 17-7 lead. ENMU attempted a comeback, cutting the Lion lead to six points, but it was for naught. The Lions won the set 25-16.
 
Once again, A&M-Commerce came into the set on a run, winning seven of the first 10 points. The Greyhounds answered back, scoring six in a row to take a lead. The teams traded runs, as each had a 4-0 run. With the Lions leading 21-19 late, the Greyhounds went on a late run to win the set 25-23.
 
The Lion had a 5-0 run early in the fourth set as A&M-Commerce again was hot to start. The Greyhounds pulled back within three points at 15-12 before the Lions exploded to end the match, taking 10 of the final 11 to win 25-13.