Razorbacks beat national champion Texas A&M in four sets

Information from Arkansas Communications is included in this story.

FAYETTEVILLE, Ark. — The Razorbacks got their first win over a ranked team in almost three seasons Sunday. It came against the team that won it all last year.

Arkansas took down No. 12 Texas A&M 3-1 at Barnhill Arena. The set scores went 25-20, 25-17, 20-25 and 25-22.

The last ranked team the Hogs beat was No. 8 Kentucky. That came in the Sweet 16 of the 2023 NCAA Tournament.

Sunday also gave Arkansas its first SEC win of the season. The team is 9-7 overall and 1-4 in league play.

There were 3,261 people in the stands. Barnhill’s sixth-biggest volleyball crowd ever is a pretty good audience for a 1-3 conference team.

The weekend’s two home matches drew 5,988 fans total. Arkansas hadn’t topped that over a weekend since the 2023 season.

Parker Duncan ended the match with back-to-back kills. She finished with 17 and went over 500 for her career.

How the Hogs built a 2-0 lead

Texas A&M won the opening point. It took the Razorbacks a few minutes to settle in, and then a Thurman kill and a Gaby Cornier ace had them up 7-4.

Duncan’s tip gave Arkansas a five-point lead at the technical timeout. Layla Smith later added a kill to make it 21-15.

The Aggies got past 20. An A&M attack error gave the Hogs the set 25-20.

Neither side could pull away early in the second set. Duncan got Arkansas to 10 first with a kill from the back row.

Another Duncan kill and an ace from freshman setter Maggie McCarroll made it 15-10 at the break.

A&M then scored three straight and later got within one. A block by Thurman and Aleki Alexander helped Arkansas reach 20 first and go back up by five.

Laci Bohannan and Duncan finished the set with back-to-back kills, 25-17.

Texas A&M answers back

The third set was close early.

A 4-0 run that included a Duncan kill and a Duncan solo block put Arkansas up 12-9. A&M used a timeout.

Smith’s kill had the Hogs ahead 15-12 at the technical break.

From there, the Aggies went on a 5-1 run for a 21-19 lead. Arkansas called timeout, and A&M still finished the set 25-20.

The Aggies were ahead early in the fourth, too. Arkansas sent in Lakin Laurendine to serve, and the Razorbacks pulled even at 9-9.

A&M went back in front for a bit. McCarroll’s ace came in a 3-0 run that put Arkansas up 15-14 at the timeout.

The Aggies scored first after the break. The Hogs answered with three straight, the last one on a Bohannan solo block, for an 18-15 lead.

Duncan finishes it off

An A&M attack error left Arkansas two points from the win.

The Aggies scored three in a row to make it 23-21. The Hogs called timeout.

Duncan put away the next two points, and the match was over.

Bohannan had 11 kills with just two errors and hit .360. She also set a career high with six blocks.

McCarroll had 34 assists and 12 digs in her second career start. It was her second straight double-double.

Cornier’s 14 digs led the team.

Alexander had eight blocks, with seven assisted and one solo.

What’s next for the Hogs

Arkansas blocked 14 shots to A&M’s nine. Bohannan had six of those and Smith had four.

Two more ranked teams come to Barnhill next weekend.

No. 10 Tennessee plays the Razorbacks on Friday, Oct. 16, at 7 p.m.

No. 4 Kentucky visits Sunday, Oct. 18, at 2 p.m. Arkansas beat the Wildcats for its last ranked win before this one.

Both matches will stream on SEC Network+.