LAKE CHARLES, La. – The McNeese Cowgirls finished out each of the first two sets on a strong note as they defeated the LSU New Orleans Privateers 3-0 (25-18, 25-16, 25-23) on Saturday morning at Townsley Law Arena.
LSU New Orleans pulled ahead at 17-16 late in the third set after falling slightly behind close to the media timeout. The Privateers were down three, but took advantage of three errors on McNeese's side of the net (two on attack and one on serve).
The third set came right down to the wire as the two sides were tied at 23-23, but a pair of Privateer attack errors on the next two rallies finished off the proceedings as McNeese secured an important win to keep them solidly in the field for the conference tournament with four matches remaining.
The score was tied five different times within the first 20 rallies as both teams traded points at the outset. The Cowgirls gained a little separation just before the media timeout from two kills by Gabbie Maldonado which vaulted them to a 15-12 advantage.
McNeese finished the opening set by scoring four of the last five points. Ava Henry had a solo block to give the home side an early lead in the match.
Set two had a similar early outlook as both teams were going back and forth on the scoreboard. The Privateers took an 11-10 lead on a kill by
Mariana Franco. However, McNeese responded with a 5-1 spurt before the media timeout to take the lead by three.
The Cowgirls stretched out their lead from there behind what was a .343 attack percentage in the second set. By contrast, the Privateers were held to a .154 attack percentage in the second set.
Gabbie Maldonado had 10 kills to lead the McNeese offense. Ava Henry and Kayla Wilson each added eight kills. Sophia Tocmo finished with 19 digs to lead a Cowgirls squad that averaged 21 digs per set on the day.
INSIDE THE BOX
Olivia Bartrina led the Privateer offense with nine kills and added six digs.
Ava Frerman finished with eight kills while
Armie Hall added five kills.
Vladana Ristic finished with a team high 19 digs and had 39 digs for the week.
Defne Eciroglu had 15 assists and
Nyakuak Lual had three total blocks.
NEXT UP
The Privateers will travel to Hammond to face Southeastern on Tuesday, Nov. 3.
SEASON TICKETS
Tickets for all home matches are available
here.
ABOUT LSU NEW ORLEANS
In July of 2026 the University of New Orleans rejoined the LSU system and rebranded to "LSU New Orleans" bringing together two powerful brands - the purple and gold of LSU with the unbreakable spirit of New Orleans. The transition marks a return to the LSU family for the University - a place it called home from 1958-2011. Athletic teams will remain the Privateers and continue to compete in the Southland Conference.
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