On Oct. 23, the Grambling volleyball team won the first two games then, after losing the next two, won the fifth and deciding game to defeat Prairie View A&M University before 3,000 plus spectators at the William “Billy” J. Nicks Fieldhouse.
The loss was the first in SWAC play for the Lady Panthers, who dropped to 6-1 in the conference and 16-10 overall while the Lady Tigers improved to 5-1 and 14-11 overall.
“I was pretty impressed with the girls to be honest,” Coach Alicia Pete said despite the loss. “I think they were a little cocky [at the beginning of the game], knowing we had already beat Grambling, but I think this was a wakeup call…and an early lesson learned before we enter the big tournament.”
The teams played an intense match, with neither team gaining more than a four-point advantage until the final game. The Lady Tigers held on to win the first two games (30-27, 30-28).
As the Lady Panthers’ home standing crowd began to pour into the arena in large numbers, Prairie View pulled off two equally tight games (30-27, 30-28).
“I think the crowd played a great part in encouraging the girls and keeping them going. I couldn’t ask for a better crowd. I also thought the band brought great energy to the arena,” said Pete.
From there, however, the Lady Tigers jumped out to a 10-5 lead in the final game and held the Lady Panthers at bay for the rest of the game.
Prairie View senior Tamika Newman and junior Ashley Campbell led the Lady Panthers with 18 kills with Newman adding five digs, while senior Shannon Harrison had 10 kills and 12 digs. Grambling was led by senior Sonora Strong’s 24 kills and 23 digs while sophomore Kayla Williams added 23 kills and 17 digs.