Arkansas volleyball picked up a program first on Saturday, beating Howard for the first time ever and doing it in four sets: 25-19, 25-11, 22-25, 25-17.
The win kept the Razorbacks perfect through three matches at the Towson Invitational in Towson, Md.
Senior outside hitter Lakin Laurendine carried the offense all afternoon. She finished with 21 kills, the most by any Hog this season, and did it with remarkable efficiency.
Laurendine swung 50 times and made just three attack errors, good for a .360 hitting percentage. She also chipped in four blocks on the defensive end.
Arkansas got a boost from its newcomers too.
Freshman middle blocker Elsie Law turned in a strong two-way outing with 10 kills, a .421 hitting percentage and seven blocks.
Fellow freshman Madi Benne set a new career high with 20 digs while running the libero spot, and she added six assists along the way.
The Hogs also found their groove serving the ball. Arkansas piled up eight team aces, with Gaby Cornier, Lily Dudley and Romani Thurman each notching two apiece.
Howard fights back before Arkansas closes it out
The match wasn’t without a scare.
Arkansas cruised through the first two sets, opening with a 6-0 run in set one behind three Laurendine kills and a Thurman ace before winning 25-19, then blowing the second set open with a 10-1 closing stretch to win 25-11 and hit .316 as a team.
Howard found its footing in the third. The Bison trailed 13-7 before ripping off a 10-2 run that flipped the set in their favor, and they hung on for a 25-22 win to avoid the sweep.
Arkansas didn’t let the momentum linger.
Cornier opened set four with an ace and the Hogs jumped to a 3-0 lead, never letting Howard string together more than a single point at a time.
A Dudley ace pushed the lead to 10 at 18-8, and even after Howard trimmed it to seven, Arkansas answered and closed out the match on another Laurendine kill for a 25-17 finish.
The win pushed Arkansas to 7-2 on the season with two non-conference matches left before league play begins.
The Razorbacks now head to Jonesboro, Ark. for a weekend doubleheader, facing in-state rival Arkansas State on Friday, Sept. 18 at 7 p.m. before wrapping things up against Illinois on Saturday at 2 p.m.
