It wasn’t pretty, but in a grueling five-set match on the road, No. 6 Texas managed to escape what would have been a historic night for TCU.
Texas clawed its way back against TCU, mounting a 3-2 comeback victory on the night, preventing what would have been only their second loss all-time to TCU. With the win, Texas continues its win streak to nine, keeping a perfect record in the Big 12 at 9-0 and improving to 14-3 overall.
Texas’ star senior Asjia O’Neal had a big night for Texas, hitting .529 with 10 kills and four blocks. Junior outside hitter Madison Skinner led the team in kills with 19, along with three blocks. Texas’ back row relied on sophomore Emma Halter and junior Keonilei Akana, who both totaled 13 digs.
The first set set the tone for the rest of the match showing that TCU was locked in for the night. TCU dominated the first set early behind a 5-0 run, with familiar-face Melanie Parra leading the charge at the service line. TCU won the set comfortably 25-14 after holding Texas to a .025 hitting percentage due to numerous hitting and passing errors.
“We were just so chaotic and all over the place, and we were just discombobulated,” said Texas head coach Jerritt Elliott.
Looking to bounce back with organization and poise, Texas failed to do so early in the second set. TCU continued on their momentum as they led 8-2 forcing Texas to timeout.
Finally, after the timeout, the Longhorns came to life and fought back to take the lead. Texas’ defense, led by senior Bella Bergmark, who earned four blocks in the set, continued the way for Texas, scraping by with a second-set win to even the match.
The third set was all offense with both teams hitting over .340 and high double-digit kill tallies, but it was ultimately TCU’s offense that prevailed. TCU hit .486 with 20 kills in the set to overwhelm the Longhorns.
In a must-win set for Texas, both teams battled back and forth throughout the set. The fourth set had nine ties and four lead changes. Both teams used incredible plays on the net and from the backline to swing points in their favor, but Texas’ Halter and O’Neal used huge digs and kills to get Texas its critical set win to force the match into the fifth set.
The fifth and deciding set let the Longhorn’s confidence shine behind key kills from Skinner and junior Jenna Wenaas, who was in and out of the lineup throughout the match. Texas’ offense led them to a 14-11 lead behind their .500 hitting percentage, but TCU didn’t go down without a fight, forcing three match points before a TCU service error finally earned Texas the battle win on the road.
After almost three weeks away from home, Texas will finally return to Gregory Gymnasium for its next game. Texas takes on No. 21 Baylor next Thursday, Oct. 26 at 7 p.m.
