ARLINGTON (SMU) – The No. 11-ranked SMU volleyball team advanced to the final of the historic Spikes Under the Lights exhibition showcase with a 2-0 (24-22, 21-18) win over No. 10 Penn State Thursday night at AT&T Stadium.
The Mustangs fell in the final match 2-0 to No. 1 Nebraska, ending the momentous night for college volleyball runners-up of the first-of-its-kind event. The Huskers took down No. 17 Florida 2-0 in the first semifinal matchup of the day.
EVENT NOTES
- As a runner-up of the event, the SMU Volleyball program will receive an extra $50,000. SMU got $200,000 to compete in the event.
- Spikes Under the Lights marked a historic milestone as the first women's college sporting event staged at AT&T Stadium and one of the first women's sporting events of any kind to take place in an NFL venue.
HOW IT HAPPENED:
SEMIFINAL VS. #10 Penn State: SMU 2, PSU 0
SMU and Penn State traded runs to start the opening set. The Mustangs led 11-9 through the first 20 points with a balanced offensive attack. Christa Wilburn led the Mustangs through the first portion with two kills. The teams continued to go back and forth into extra points, and SMU took the frame 24-22.
Like the first set, the teams went back and forth, trading spurts of runs. SMU worked its way to 15-13 due to a service error by the Nittany Lions. Penn State roared back with three for the next four points to take a 17-16 lead. SMU answered with four straight points, starting with two kills from Davis to leap back in front. Up 20-18, Davis ended the semifinal with a kill to advance to the final.
In the match, the Mustangs hit .323 for the match and were led by Davis, who logged 11 kills in the two-set match while hitting .364.
FINAL VS. #1 Nebraska: SMU 0, NEB 2
No. 1 Nebraska got off to a strong start in the final match of the event, racing to an early 12-2 advantage. SMU held firm, cut the deficit, and started to chip away. The Mustangs worked to within six at 16-10 to force a Cornhuskers timeout; however, Nebraska's lead was too much to overcome. The Cornhuskers won the first frame 21-12. Nebraska hit .160 in the first set and held SMU to a –0.087 clip on the other end.
The Mustangs started stronger in the second frame, down one (8-7) through the first 15 points. However, Nebraska went on a 10-2 run, which created the separation needed to win the frame. Up 18-10, the Cornhuskers closed the match with a 3-1 run to win the final match of the exhibition showcase.
NEXT UP:
SMU will travel to Fort Collin, Colorado, to battle Colorado State on Saturday at 6 pm CT. The match will be streamed on YouTube.
