Natchitoches, LA – Coming off an exhausting five-set victory over the Northwestern State Lady Demons last night, the Central Arkansas Sugar Bears wasted no time in handling the third-seeded Sam Houston State Bearkats as they swept them 3-0 on Saturday afternoon in the semifinals. The Sugar Bears were led by Samantha Anderson who finished with a game-high 15 kills and recorded an impressive .419 hitting percentage. Haley Tippett pitched in an efficient double-double with 10 kills and 13 digs while Emily Doss led the team defensively with a match-high 21 digs.
 
Head coach Jeni Jones Chatman was very content after the sweep.
 
"We played a whole lot better than last night. We had attackers earlier today in the match than yesterday and that was a big difference," Chatman said. "The thing I'm most proud of is our digs, we had 60 to their 45. That's something we've been putting a lot of time and attention into and it's been great to see that finally start to show up in matches."
 

The match started with both teams going back and forth as there were three ties in the first 12 points. The Bearkats created some separation after a kill and Sugar Bear error made it 7-5, but Central Arkansas responded with a 5-0 run to take a 10-7 lead. Sam Houston got a kill from Jordan Kiley that tied it back up at 12-12, but Central Arkansas scored the next two and never trailed again. The Bearkats made it interesting late after scoring two straight to make it 22-20, but a pair of kills from Kellen Dunn and Anderson sparked a 3-0 run to take the first set 25-20. Doss impressed defensively as she recorded a set-high nine digs.
 
The Sugar Bears came out flexing in the second set as they opened with four kills and held an early 4-2 lead. Trailing 9-7, the Bearkats got back-to-back kills to even the score at 9-9. Central Arkansas created some separation soon after as Tippett delivered a kill and Sam Houston delivered two errors to make it 13-10 midway through. The Bearkats did not let up as they responded with a quick 3-0 run of their own and it was even again at 13-13. Both teams continued to fight as there were eight ties through 32 points and the score sat at 16-16. Central Arkansas' star power came through to break the tie late as they got two kills from Anderson and one from Dunn and Tippett to complete the mini 4-0 run and make it 23-19. The Bearkats scored the next two, but Tippett's eighth kill of the day advanced her team to the third set with a 25-21 win.
 
The Sugar Bears took an early 3-2 lead in the third set after Tippett recorded an impressive dig that led to a Dunn kill. After a Sugar Bear error made it 12-10 Bearkats, Central Arkansas went on a 6-0 run led by a pair of Anderson kills and four Bearkat errors that forced a Sam Houston timeout. The timeout did not make a difference as Central Arkansas continued to dominate and finished on a 13-2 run to complete the sweep with a 25-12 win.
 
The win sets the Sugar Bears up with a date in the championship against top-seeded Stephen F. Austin Ladyjacks tomorrow at 3:05 p.m. Chatman is proud of her team for returning to the championship for the second season in a row but knows tomorrow will be a different beast.
 
"I feel great. Any time you play in a championship match, you can't ask for more," Chatman said. "We know tomorrow is going to be an epic battle but I'm feeling good about it after today's performance."