MAGNOLIA  --- The University of Arkansas at Monticello Cotton Blossoms (7-11, 0-3 GSC) managed just an .056 hitting percentage as they were swept by the Southern Arkansas University Lady Muleriders on Thursday at the W.T. Watson Athletic Center in Magnolia.

SAU picked up match victories of 30-21, 30-24, and 30-28 to seal the sweep. Taura Rush (Jr., Joseph City, Ariz.) led UAM with nine kills, while Maegan Martin (Jr., Burnet, Texas) dished out 20 assists and Stephanie Hatten (Fr., Baytown, Texas) led UAM with nine digs. 

ARKADELPHIA  --- Despite placing three players in double-digit kills, the University of Arkansas at Monticello Cotton Blossoms (7-10, 0-2 GSC) dropped a 3-1 decision to the Ouachita Baptist University Lady Tigers on Tuesday night at Vining Arena.

The Tigers won the opening match 30-17 before UAM rallied to take a 34-32 victory in the second game to tie the match, however, OBU picked up 30-23 and 30-27 wins in games three and four to seal the victory.

OBU out-hit UAM .363 to .299 for the match. Kameshia Melton (Sr., Grapevine, Texas) led UAM with 16 kills, while both Taura Rush (Jr., Joseph City, Ariz.) and MacKenzie Willis (Jr., Andrews, Texas) had 14 kills. OBU’s Breanne Garrett led all players with 31 kills.

Maegan Martin (Jr., Burnet, Texas) dished out 40 assists and picked up a UAM-high 23 digs, while Stephanie Hatten (Fr., Baytown, Texas) and Rush added 22 and 15 digs, respectively.  

The Cotton Blossoms will return to action on Thursday, September 27, as they travel to Magnolia to face Southern Arkansas. The match is scheduled for 7 p.m.
 

PINE BLUFF, AR --- The University of Arkansas at Monticello Cotton Blossoms (7-9) picked up a pair of wins in a tri-match held on the campus of the University of Arkansas-Pine Bluff, downing UAPB 3-0 and then topping Jackson State 3-2.

In the opener against UAPB, the Blossoms rolled to 30-16, 30-16, and 30-22 wins. Kameshia Melton (Sr., Grapevine, Texas) led all players with 13 kills, while MacKenzie Willis (Jr., Andrews, Texas) added 12. Maegan Martin (Jr., Burnet, Texas) dished out 32 assists while Stephanie Hatten (Fr., Baytown, Texas) led all players with 15 digs. Martin also contributed ten digs and five service aces.

In the finale against Jackson State, the Lady Tigers raced out to a 2-0 match lead after winning the opening games 30-25 and 30-27. The Cotton Blossoms responded by winning games three and four 30-26 and 30-28 before picking up a 15-11 victory in the fifth and deciding game.

Taura Rush (Jr., Joseph City, Ariz.) led UAM with 25 kills, while Melton added 17, Willis added 15, and Nicole Ferguson (So., Brentwood, Tenn.) added 10. Martin dished out a match-best 64 assists, while Hatten led all players with 32 digs. Four other Cotton Blossoms posted double-digit digs, as Willis added 17, Martin and Rush both added 14, and Vikki Crisco (Fr., Saginaw, Texas) added ten. 

MONTICELLO --- The University of Arkansas at Monticello Cotton Blossoms (5-9, 0-1 GSC) were unable to keep pace with a red-hot Henderson State Lady Reddies (12-3, 2-0 GSC) squad, as the Lady Reddies picked up a 3-0 victory on Thursday at Steelman Fieldhouse.

The Lady Reddies and Cotton Blossoms fought back-and-forth in the opening game, until HSU opened up a five-point (16-11) advantage. The Lady Reddies would continue to build distance en route to a 30-20 victory in the opening game.

HSU jumped out to a 7-0 lead in the second game before the Cotton Blossoms were able to score their first point, and then scored the next 14 points to take a 21-1 lead. UAM rallied late to pull to within 30-12 at the end of game two.

The Cotton Blossoms took charge in the third game, racing out to an 18-8 lead before the Lady Reddies staged a rally of their own, eventually knotting the match at 28-28 before going ahead to take a 34-32 victory in the deciding game.

HSU’s Edith Musebe led all players with 20 kills. Taura Rush (Jr., Joseph City, Ariz.) led UAM with 11 on the night, while Maegan Martin (Jr., Burnet, Texas) dished out a match-high 37 assists. 

MONTICELLO --- The University of Arkansas at Monticello Cotton Blossoms (5-8) had three players register double-digit kills as the Blossoms rolled to a 3-1 victory over the Grambling State University Lady Tigers (3-4) on Wednesday night at Steelman Fieldhouse.

After falling behind 28-22 in the opening game, the Cotton Blossoms rallied to knot the game at 28-28 before taking a 35-33 victory in the opening game. UAM carried the momentum into game number two to take a dominant 30-17 victory.

The Lady Tigers would not go quietly, as they rallied to capture a 30-28 victory in game three before UAM rallied to take a 31-29 victory in the decisive fourth game.

Taura Rush (Jr., Joseph City, Ariz.) led all players with 16 kills, while Kameshia Melton (Sr., Grapevine, Texas) and Nicole Ferguson (So., Brentwood, Tenn.) both posted double-digit kills, notching 14 and 12, respectively.

Maegan Martin (Jr., Burnet, Texas) dished out 47 assists, while leading UAM with 17 digs. MacKenzie Willis (Jr., Andrews, Texas) also had 13 digs.

Grambling’s Kayla Williams and Markesha Warner both posted 12 kills, while Jeanetta Linzy led all players with 21 digs. 

DENTON, TX --- The University of Arkansas at Monticello Cotton Blossoms (4-6) got off to a shaky start at the Texas Woman’s University tournament, dropping a 3-1 decision to Southwestern Oklahoma in the tournament opener, and a 3-2 decision to Southeastern Oklahoma in the day’s finale.

In the opener, after dropping the first game to Southwestern Oklahoma 30-27, the Cotton Blossoms rallied to take a dominant 30-16 victory in game two to knot the match at one game apiece. However, the Bulldogs responded by winning games three and four 30-26 and 33-31 to take the victory.

Taura Rush (Jr., Joseph City, Ariz.) and Kameshia Melton (Sr., Grapevine, Texas) both posted a match-high 18 kills. MacKenzie Willis (Jr., Andrews, Texas) added ten kills in the loss. Maegan Martin (Jr., Burnet, Texas) had 53 assists while leading UAM with 25 digs. Keri Gilbert (Fr., San Marcos, Texas), Rush, Nicole Ferguson (So., Brentwood, Tenn.), Willis, and Sara Kindred (So., Frisco, Texas) all added double-digit digs, posting 18, 14, 12, 11, and 11 digs respectively.

In the day’s finale, the Cotton Blossoms rolled out to a 2-0 lead against Southeastern Oklahoma after 30-23 and 30-26 wins, but the Savage Storm rallied to win games three and four 30-26, 30-27. The Savage Storm clinched the victory with a 15-8 victory in the fifth game.

Melton led UAM with 15 kills, while Willis added 14 in the losing effort. Martin added 35 assists, while Kindred posted a career high 26 digs, more than doubling her previous career high of 12 set against Central Missouri during the 2006 season. Willis, Martin, and Gilbert also posted double-digit digs, adding 16, 13, and 10, respectively. 

The Cotton Blossoms will return to action Saturday with a pair of games on the final day of the TWU Tournament, facing tournament host Texas Woman’s University at noon and closing out tournament play with a 5 p.m. match against Midwestern State.
 

AUSTIN, TX --- The University of Arkansas at Monticello Cotton Blossoms (4-4) dropped a pair of matches on the final day of the St. Edward’s University Hilltopper Classic, falling 3-2 to Nova Southeastern in the day’s opener and dropping a 3-0 decision to St. Edward’s in the tournament finale.

The Blossoms dropped the opening match 30-27 to Nova Southeastern, but rallied to take a 2-1 lead after 30-27 and 30-28 wins in games two and three. Nova tied the match with a 30-28 victory in the fourth game, and then won a hotly-contested game five 16-14.

Taura Rush (Jr., Joseph City, Ariz.) led all players with 24 kills, while Kameshia Melton (Sr., Grapevine, Texas) added 21 and MacKenzie Willis (Jr., Andrews, Texas) added 12. Maegan Martin (Jr., Burnet, Texas) dished out 59 assists and led UAM with 20 digs. Rush added 18, and Willis, Nicole Ferguson (So., Brentwood, Tenn.) and Stephanie Hatten (Fr., Baytown, Texas) all contributed 15 digs.

In the day’s finale, the Blossoms were swept 30-26, 30-21, and 30-22 by tournament host St. Edward’s. Melton led UAM with 11 kills, while Martin dished out 24 assists. Hatten added 12 digs to lead the Cotton Blossoms.