Memphis, Tenn. – The Central Arkansas volleyball program opened the 2016 season with a pair of matches at the Memphis Invitational on Friday, squaring off against 2015 NCAA Tournament team Belmont and Memphis. The Sugar Bears and the Bruins welcomed in the new season with a barn-burner which Belmont eventually won 3-2, before Central Arkansas took down Memphis 3-1.

In the night cap, Central Arkansas took advantage of four kills from senior Rachel Sharp and three total blocks to take the first set 25-19, before getting five kills from sophomore Samantha Anderson and eight digs from sophomore Haley Tippett to win the second set 25-20.

After Memphis rallied to win the third set 27-25, the Sugar Bears cruised to victory in the fourth set thanks to four kills each from Tippett and junior Megan Nash.

All told in the match, Central Arkansas hit .162 in the win over Memphis, getting double-digit kills from a trio of players. Nash tallied a team-high 13 kills behind a .219 attack percentage, while Anderson added 11 kills and Tippett pitched in with 10. Tippett completed her first double-double in a Central Arkansas uniform with a match-high 24 digs, while junior Kristine Hjembo collected on of her own with 16 assists and 11 digs. Freshman Elizabeth Armstrong handed out a team-high 21 assists, and Anderson and Nash each collected five blocks.

In the day's first game, the Bruins (1-0) hit just .188 in the first set, but still managed to outhit Central Arkansas (0-1) handily, thanks to a -.086 mark from the Sugar Bears. Despite the discrepancy in attack percentage, and an 11-3 run to open the match for Belmont, UCA battled hard, eventually taking a 16-15 lead in the set. From that point on, neither team was able to create much distance, with Belmont eventually taking the set 25-22 to take the lead in the match.

Central Arkansas came out on fire over the next two sets, hitting .600 in the second and .391 in the third while keeping the Bruins below .050 in each set to take a 2-1 lead behind identical 25-14 set wins. Central Arkansas got four kills from Sharp and three more from Nash in the second set, as every Sugar Bear with an attempt hit at least .400. In the third set, Tippett led the way, tallying four kills and three digs to lead UCA on both sides of the ball.

The fourth set was a back-and-forth affair, as neither team was able to mount a lead bigger than one point until Belmont took a 16-14 lead to force a UCA timeout. The Bruins came out of the break firing on all cylinders, unfortunately, going on a 9-3 run to take the set and even the match at 2-2.

The fifth set would see Belmont grab a 6-3 lead, and though Central Arkansas would cut the lead to 6-5, the Sugar Bears were unable to take the lead in the decisive set, falling 15-13 to drop the match 3-2.

For the match, Central Arkansas six players with at least five kills, led by Sharp, who tallied 11 while hitting .383. Anderson and Tippett chipped in with nine and eight kills, respectively. Armstrong and Hjembo each helped pace the offense, as Anderson dished out 22 assists and Hjembo added 14 of her own. Defensively, Tippett dug a team-high 15 attacks, while Anderson picked up seven blocks.

The Sugar Bears return to action tomorrow at noon, facing off with Chicago State.