Red Raiders Drop Five-Setter to TCU

Thursday, October 8

Fort Worth, TX

5 PM

Texas Tech Athletics

2-3,2-3Big 12

TCU

1-2,1-2Big 12

Texas Tech

TCU

Photo by: Luke Lu / Iowa State Athletics

October 08, 2020 | Women's Volleyball

Box Score

By: Harry Endicott

FORT WORTH, Texas – The Texas Tech volleyball team battled tough but came up short on Thursday night, falling to TCU, 3-2.

Samantha Sanders led the Red Raiders with a career high 20 kills on the night, also tying her career high in blocks with four. Also recording double-digit kills was Brooke Kanas, who added 13, and Cadi Boyer recorded a new career high with nine. Setter Alex Kirby recorded her third double-double of the season with 51 assists and 12 digs to go along with a pair of kills. Four different Red Raiders recorded a service ace.

Texas Tech posted a season high in blocks with 14.5, led by Caitlin Dugan's eight, which was a career high for the sophomore. Allison Bloss added seven, which was a season high and one off her career best. Libero Emerson Solano added 21 digs, an ace and a pair of assists.

The Red Raiders started the night hot, going on a 9-4 run to open the match; however, the Horned Frogs would go on a run of their own to tie the match at 13, and from that point the two went back and forth through the end of the set. It was TCU that would take the first, finishing the frame on a 5-2 run to take a 1-0 lead.

Texas Tech came back strong, taking the next two sets to take control of the match.

After trading blows for most of the opening half of the second set, the Red Raiders went on a 4-0 run to take a 17-13 lead and didn't look back for the rest of the set. Sanders was huge in the frame, posting six kills, while Kanas had four as the pair paced Tech to a .394 hitting percentage in the period.

Dugan, Kanas and Sanders each added three kills in the third set, and Bloss helped on three of the Red Raiders' 6.5 blocks in the frame. After trailing, 12-11, midway through the set, Tech won 14 of the next 23 points to win the frame, 25-21, take a 2-1 lead in the match.

After TCU won the fourth, 25-17, the match moved to a decisive fifth set. Once again, Sanders came up big, scoring five kills in the final period, but it wouldn't be enough as TCU took the set, 17-15, and the match. The Red Raiders controlled much of the first half of the set, and jumped out to a 10-7 lead past the midway point, but TCU came back to clinch the match.

The Red Raiders will be back in action on Friday night at 5 p.m. looking to bounce back against the Horned Frogs on ESPN+.