Dukes Roll Past Texas State, Win 3-1

Friday, September 29

Harrisonburg, Va.

6 p.m.

James Madison University

11-4,4-0Sun Belt

Texas State

9-6,2-2Sun Belt

Texas St.

James Madison

9/29/2023 10:03:00 PM | Volleyball

Box Score

HARRISONBURG, Va. – Jaydyn Clemmer recorded a career-high 25 digs and three Dukes finished with double-digit kills as James Madison volleyball moved to 4-0 in Sun Belt Conference play with a four-set win over Texas State Friday evening.

JMU improved to 11-4 (4-0 SBC) with set scores of 25-21, 25-13, 17-25, and 25-17, while Texas State dropped to 9-6 (2-2 SBC) with the loss. Since James Madison joined the conference in 2022, three of four losses suffered by the Bobcats have come at the hands of the Dukes.

Miette Veldman (15), Brenya Reid (13) and Sophie Davis (11) finished in double-digit kills for JMU, which hit .263 as a team. For a second consecutive night, the Dukes' defense stifled Texas State, who hit .142. In four conference matches, JMU has held its opponents to a combined .138 hitting percentage.

Samantha Wunsch led the Bobcat attack with a match-high 22 kills. Alyssa Ortega added 24 digs, and Jade Defraeye registered five blocks.

HOW IT HAPPENED
Set 1: JMU 25-21
The Dukes jumped out to a 5-1 lead on a service ace from Rebecca Watkins, her first of four on the night. After slowly fighting back into the set, KJ Johnson brought Texas State back with a kill that tied the set at 11. It remained tight through the media timeout, but JMU maintained a slim one-point edge (15-14) on a Reid kill. After a kill from Wunsch made it 16 all, the Dukes jumped ahead 19-17 on a Veldman kill. Another kill from Johnson trimmed the deficit to one, however, three straight JMU points punctuated with back-to-back kills from Veldman gave the Dukes a four-point lead (22-18). Texas State cut the deficit to two (23-21), but two consecutive kills from Reid slammed the door on the Bobcats' hopes in the first set.

Set 2: JMU 25-13
The Dukes opened the second set 8-5 before Texas State scored two straight to cut the lead to two (8-7). However, an 8-0 run with Madilyn O'Toole at the service line ballooned the JMU advantage to nine (17-8) and gave the Dukes a stranglehold on the set. The advantage grew to as many as 12 (21-9), highlighted by a dominant 13-2 run for the Dukes. JMU took the second set and a 2-0 match lead in emphatic fashion on a slide kill from Davis.

Set 3: Texas State 25-17
Kills from Alex Kwasnik and Veldman put the Dukes ahead 4-2, but Texas State quickly proved it wasn't going down without a fight. An 11-5 run swung the momentum in the Bobcats' favor and gave the visitors a 13-10 lead, which led to a JMU timeout. The advantage grew to as many as eight (20-12), and Texas State forced a fourth set on a block from Defraeye and Ryann Torres. After the Dukes hit a blistering .352 combined in the first two sets, the Bobcats' defense stepped up, holding the Dukes to a .152 hitting percentage in the third.

Set 4: JMU 25-17
Three straight service aces from Watkins fired up the home crowd and gave the Dukes the first punch of the set. JMU built a 6-2 lead before Texas State called a timeout. Out of the break, the Bobcats subsequently scored six of the next nine, which pulled the visitors to one point (9-8). After the set was tied at 13-13, the Dukes finished the set on a 12-4 run securing the victory on an attacking error.

UP NEXT
The Dukes travel to Norfolk to take on Old Dominion Oct. 6-7. Friday's match will take place at 6:30 p.m., while Saturday's will be at 1 p.m. Both matches will stream on ESPN+.