OXFORD, Miss. – The No. 10 Hogs survived a scare on Wednesday night and battled back from an 0-2 deficit for a reverse sweep over Ole Miss in a 3-2 victory.
It was Arkansas’ first reverse sweep since the 2021 season, and only the fourth five-setter for the Hogs this season. The Razorbacks improved to 13-2 in SEC play and 23-4 overall with the victory, the most wins for the program since 2003.
Graduate outside hitter Jill Gillen led the offense with 24 kills and hit .333. She also had 16 digs for a double-double and contributed three service aces. Taylor Head and Hannah Hogue also posted double-doubles for the Hogs: Head with 17 kills and 17 digs, and Hogue with 47 assists and 14 digs.
Junior middle blocker Zoi Evans had six blocks to anchor the Arkansas defense, three of which were solo. It’s a new career high in solo stuffs for her, and ties the season high that Jill Gillen set against Michigan State on Aug. 25.
Set 1
The Rebs held the momentum early on as they limited the Hogs to one point at a time and found every gap on the floor for a 9-4 advantage. The Razorbacks locked in from there though and used a five-point run highlighted by two Gillen kills and an ace by Hannah Hogue and quickly tied it at 9-all. The score was tied seven more times after that, but the Rebels scored four straight for a lead they carried all the way to the end of the set, which finished 25-21 in favor of Ole Miss.
Set 2
The second set again saw the Hogs limited to one point at a time early while Ole Miss padded a lead. Arkansas called time down 11-6 and regrouped from there, with a couple of runs that put the Hogs within one at 15-14. The Razorbacks couldn’t get anything going for very long though, and they found themselves down 22-19. The Hogs called time, which gave them a big boost and three straight points had the score knotted 22-22. Ole Miss took a timeout of its own, which was enough momentum to get the lead back and keep it for a 25-23 victory.
Set 3
While the third set was close to start, the Razorbacks found a rhythm and strung together five straight points, capped off by an ace from Gillen, for an 11-7 advantage. The Rebs kept chipping away and came within one at 15-14, but the Hogs responded with a three point run and extended the lead 18-14. The home team huddled and then scored five of the next six and tied it at 19-all. The Hogs called time and regrouped quickly with a four-point run, which made it 23-19. Arkansas held on to the lead and a kill from Taylor Head sealed the set 25-21.
