Falcons Sweep Little Rock to Open ORU Invitational

TULSA, Okla. – Backed by a match-high 12 kills from sophomore Vittoria Juarez, the Air Force volleyball team picked up its first win of the season this evening (Sept. 6), as it swept Little Rock in the opening match of the ORU Invitational. The Falcons held a 17-kill margin over the Trojans (47-30), as they downed their opposition by 25-23, 25-22, 25-21 scores and gave head coach Keith Barnett his first Air Force victory.

Juarez, who hit .333 on the night (12-4-24), was one of three Falcons to hit over .300 in the match. Freshman Taleah Cooper led all players with a .538 average, as she collected eight kills on 13 swings, with just one error, while freshman BrookeLyn Messenger added a .353 average (8-2-17). Sophomore Bailey Keith, who tallied nine kills on .261 hitting (9-3-23), accounted for half of the Falcons' six service aces, while junior Mackenzie Robertson assisted on five blocks and classmate Alex King collected 11 digs. Fellow junior Andi Ahlers rounded out the Falcons' list of stat leaders, as she matched her season-high of 27 assists.

Little Rock scored the first three points of the match, but Keith and Juarez put down kills to halt the Trojans' early run and bring the Falcons within one (2-3). The pair added another set of back-to-back kills during a 5-0 Air Force run that included another kill from Juarez, an ace from King and a block from Keith and Robertson (7-5). Little Rock scored the next three points, but Air Force retook the lead at 9-8 following a Juarez/Robertson block and a Keith ace. Ssozi and Messenger tallied kills to keep the Falcons' advantage at one (11-10) and the two teams traded the next several scores, with Cooper putting down a kill to even the set at 15. Juarez tallied a pair of scores during a 3-0 run by the Falcons that pushed their lead to two (18-16). The Trojans tied the set a 21, but a pair of kills from Messenger, as well as additional kills from Juarez and Keith gave Air Force the 25-23 win.

Backed by two kills (Cooper, Juarez), two aces (King, Keith) and a block (Juarez/Robertson), Air Force opened the second set on a 5-1 run and forced Little Rock into an early timeout. The Trojans tied the set at six and took the lead on the ensuing play. Robertson put down a kill to stop the run and even the set at seven, while kills from Ssozi and Messenger kept the score tied at nine. After a kill from Cooper gave Air Force a 10-9 lead, the teams traded the next several points with the Trojans. Messenger (11-10), Cooper (12-11), Keith (13-12) and Ssozi (14-13) tallied kills to give Air Force the advantage during the back-and-forth action, but Little Rock strung together a pair of scores to take the lead at 15-14. The two schools traded short 2-0 runs during the next several points, with Messenger putting down an ace to give Air Force a 20-18 lead. A kill from Cooper evened the set at 21, while the Falcons scored the final four points, which included a Juarez kill, a Robertson/Juarez block and a Keith ace, to take the set by a 25-22 margin.

Multiple kills from Cooper, Keith and Juarez helped Air Force take a 6-3 lead to open the third set. Keith and Robertson added scores to push the Falcons' lead to four (9-5), while Ssozi put down a kill to spark a 3-0 run that extended Air Force's advantage to five (12-7). Messenger added a pair of kills (16-10), but Little Rocky tallied the next four points to pull within two (16-14). Keith stopped the Trojans' run with a kill, while a pair of scores from Juarez pushed the Falcons' lead back to six (20-14, 21-15). Little Rock cut the Falcons' advantage to three (23-20), but Air Force registered a pair of blocks (Robertson/sophomore Rachel Budzinski, Messenger/Cooper) to secure the 25-21 and complete the 3-0 sweep.

Air Force returns to the Cooper Aerobic Center tomorrow (Sept. 7) for their final two matches of the ORU Invitational. The Falcons will face Illinois State at 1:00 p.m., before taking on tournament host Oral Roberts at 7:30 p.m. (CT).

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