After struggling to score points Friday night, the Hatters used a strong offensive effort on Saturday to post a pair of wins at the Scenic City Showdown.
Stetson registered a season-high 64 kills in a 3-2 victory (25-21, 14-25, 31-29, 15-25, 15-13) over UT Martin in game one before hitting a season-high .265 in a 3-0 win (25-11, 25-16, 25-18) over South Carolina State in the nightcap.
The Hatters (7-5) finished the tournament with a 2-1 mark.
"We did much better today. We were out of sorts yesterday," Stetson head coach Kristina Hernandez said. "We responded well today. Our attacking percentage was better. When we are clicking offensively, we can dictate matches a little bit better."
McKenna Foster led the Hatters against UT Martin (6-7) with a career-high 22 kills. Kayla Weller tied a career-high with 57 assists, while Alexa Drost picked up 19 digs.
Foster finished the weekend with 43 kills and was named to the all-tournament team.
After trading wins in the first two sets, Stetson and UT Martin went deep into extra points in the third frame. The Hatters staved off one set point at 28-27 when Foster put down her 10th kill of the set. A pair of kills by Erika White at 28-28 and later at 29-29 gave Stetson the advantage. Foster then finished the set off with yet another kill, the 26th of the set for the Hatters, to give Stetson a 2-1 lead in the match.
"It kind of went back and forth in that third set," Hernandez said. "McKenna was really strong. I think she had 11 kills which is phenomenal. We were very patient, we kept our heads and we just grinded it out. It gave us some momentum."
The Skyhawks answered with a 25-15 win in set four, sending the match to a decisive fifth set. The Hatters took an early 8-4 lead at the change-over, and still led 11-7 after a Shelby Connors and Weller assisted on a block. UT Martin scored the next three points, forcing Stetson to call timeout. Following the break, a two kills by Alexis Villa and two more kills by Madison Akins including the game-winner lifted Stetson to the 3-2 victory.
"Things were pretty steady in the fifth set," Hernandez said. "I felt like we had control the whole time. The passing was stable and our serving was strong. Offensively, everyone was scoring, which made things a lot easier."
It was Stetson's second five-set victory this season. The Hatters defeated McNeese State 3-2 in the season opener.
Three Hatters recorded double-double performances. Foster added 10 digs to her 22 kills, Weller picked up 13 digs to go along with her 57 assists, and Akins recorded 14 kills and 10 digs. Connors recorded a season-high five blocks, while Villa notched 11 kills and hit a team-high .360 (11-2-25).
"We were happy with how McKenna responded today," Hernandez said. "She was a little off yesterday. She's comfortable being our top outside hitter right now. She consistently does a good job for us. She is part of the reason why we played so much better today. Alexis really stepped up as our second outside hitter."
Villa also played a major role against SC State (0-14), posting 10 kills and hitting at a .643 clip (10-1-14). Foster (13 kills) and Akins (12 kills) also recorded double-digit kill totals. Weller posted her second double-double on the day with 37 assists and 10 digs. Drost and Abby Boll each picked up 11 digs in the back row. Connors collected five blocks (one solo, four assisted) to give her 10 blocks on the day.
Stetson served eight aces in the match, including three each by Foster and Boll.
Combined, Stetson recorded 110 kills on the day.
After playing their first 12 matches on the road, the Hatters will return to Edmunds Center Wednesday night to host Bethune-Cookman in the 2014 home opener. First serve is set for 6 p.m.
