FLORENCE, Ala. (October 29, 2026) – The University of North Alabama volleyball team earned a four-set victory over Tarleton State Thursday night in Florence, Ala. inside CB&S Bank Arena, improving to a perfect 9-0 record at home this season.
North Alabama opened the match with two straight sets win, 25-23 and 25-17. Tarleton State avoided the sweep, winning the third set 25-23. The Lions responded with a dominant fourth set win at 25-18 to secure the win over the Texans and even the season series.
The Lions improve to 18-6 overall and 8-3 in United Athletic Conference play, sitting in a tie for second with Abilene Christian with five games remaining in the regular season. Saturday's opponent, EKU, remains atop the league at 11-0.
Meanwhile, Tarleton State drops to 9-15 overall and remain fifth in the standings with a 5-6 conference record. The top six teams in the nine-team league will make the postseason tournament hosted by Little Rock on Nov. 19-21.
Junior Reese Ricketts and senior Olivia Fenoff led the Lions in the kill department, combing for 33 kills. Ricketts recorded 18 while Fenoff set a career high with 15 kills and a sharp .355 hitting percentage. Senior Phoebe Reyes Fortunato and junior Dylann Garner both had nine kills. Sophomore Paris McQuirter added five kills in her first appearance of the season.
Sophomore Landri Ross and junior Kinslee McGowan were the setter pair for this match, recording a combined 50 assists. Ross made just her third appearance this season and tied her career high of 28 assists, which she set against Tennessee State on Sept. 8. McGowan recorded her 13th double-double of the season with 22 assists and 14 digs.
Senior Ava Martindale led the defense, recording 24 digs, just two-shy of her season high. Fenoff and freshman Anna Hoffmayer also helped the defense, recording three blocks apiece.
The Lions had eight service aces tonight with freshman Kaylee Maikranz responsible for four of them. Maikranz also added 10 digs and three assists.
As a team, North Alabama had 64 kills, 61 assists, 72 digs and a .237 hitting percentage.
SET ONE: UNA 25, TSU 23
North Alabama came out strong, jumping to an early 3-0 lead behind an ace from Hoffmayer and kills from Ricketts and McQuirter. Tarleton State answered with a 5-0 run to put the Texams up 5-3 before the Lions battled back to even the score at 6-6. The two teams continued to trade points before UNA used a 4-0 run to take a 15-14 lead. Tarleton State eventually built a 21-16 lead, putting North Alabama far behind late in the set. The Lions refused to let the set slip away, scoring six of the next seven points to tie the score at 22-22. A kill from Hoffmayer gave the Lions a 23-22 lead, and an attack error closed the set, giving the Lions the set one win.
SET TWO: UNA 25, TSU 17
The Lions carried their momentum into the second set, battling through a 6-4 deficit before going on 3-0 run to go up 7-6. Tarleton State momentarily cut the deficit to 12-11, but UNA had another strong run to build a 17-12 advantage. The Lions continued to forge ahead, extending the lead to 22-15 following another service ace from Maikranz. A kill from McQuirter gave the Lions set point, and Ross ended the set with a service ace.
SET THREE: TSU 25, UNA 23
Tarleton State answered in the third set, but North Alabama stayed within striking distance in the close frame. After trailing 15-12, the Lions battled back to tie it up at 16-16. The Lions also tied it up at 19-19, 21-21 and 22-22. The Texans closed the set on a 3-1 run to survive and win 25-23.
SET FOUR: UNA 25, TSU 18
UNA answered immediately in the fourth set. The Lions gained an early 7-5 lead behind consecutive attack errors by the Texans. Fenoff had three straight kills to give the Lions a five-point lead at 14-9. The Texans cut the lead to 17-15, but the Lions answered with a massive 5-0 run. A Ricketts kill put the Lions up 23-16, a service error by the Texans gave UNA match point and Garner closed the match with a smooth kill to win 3-1.
UP NEXT
North Alabama will welcome preseason favorite and dominant United Athletic Conference leader, Eastern Kentucky, on Saturday, Oct. 31 inside CB&S Bank Arena at 1 p.m. The Colonels have won 16 straight matches and are 21-2 overall this season.
For more information on North Alabama Athletics, visit www.roarlions.com and follow UNA Athletics on Facebook, Twitter and Instagram.
