Volleyball: TCU sweeps Fight in the Fort with three consecutive wins

The TCU volleyball team capped off its nonconference slate with the Fight in the Fort Invitational at Schollmaier Arena over the weekend. TCU dominated the three-day tournament with 3-1 victories against Hawaii and Florida State as well as a 3-0 shutout win over Western Carolina to enter the Big 12 Conference schedule with a five-game winning streak. The Horned Frogs (7-4, 0-0 Big 12) will play a two-game road series against Kansas State on Sept. 21 and 22 before returning home for a home series against Texas Tech.

Thursday: TCU 3, Hawaii 1

Outside hitter Melanie Parra’s outstanding weekend performance began with a strong outing against the Warriors. The Texas transfer finished with a team-high 27 kills while adding three aces as the Horned Frogs bounced back from a first-set loss to claim the next three sets for a 25-27, 27-25, 25-15, 25-20 win. Setter Riley Buckley recorded another double-double with 40 assists and 10 digs, while middle blocker Brianna Green shined with 10 blocks on the front line. Outside hitter Audrey Nalls recorded nine kills and six blocks to aid the Horned Frogs, who finished with a .269 hitting percentage while Hawaii had only a .170 hitting percentage. Libero Cecily Bramschreiber compiled a team-leading 12 digs and outside hitter Jalyn Gibson added 11 digs to help anchor the TCU defensive effort in the win.

Friday: TCU 3, Florida State 1

After setting a new season-best and career-best performance in kills against Hawaii on Thursday, Melanie Parra returned against Florida State on Friday and took her game to another level. The Mexican-born hitter exploded with 34 kills and recorded a .388 hitting percentage on Hispanic Heritage Night, leading the TCU offense as the Horned Frogs downed the Seminoles 25-22, 25-15, 22-25, 25-20 in four sets. Parra, who had a season-best .453 hitting percentage against Hawaii, added 10 digs on defense to end the game with a double-double. Riley Buckley set a new season high in assists on Friday, logging 49 while three TCU players including Cecily Bramschreiber (17 digs) and Audrey Nalls (14 digs) had double-digit digs on defense. Jalyn Gibson provided a punch for the Horned Frog front line, compiling 15 kills and a team-leading five blocks while Sarah Sylvester added four blocks.

Saturday: TCU 3, Western Carolina 0

The Horned Frogs concluded their home tournament with a dominant showing on Saturday, sweeping the Catamounts 25-17, 25-21, 25-17 in three sets to extend their winning streak. TCU shined on the defensive end of the court, holding Western Carolina to a .115 hitting percentage. Melanie Parra finished with a 15-kill, 11-dig double-double, while Jalyn Gibson added 10 kills and Audrey Nalls nearly notched a double-double of her own, recording nine kills and 11 digs. Cecily Bramschreiber earned a team-leading 12 digs on defense and Riley Buckley captained the TCU offense with 28 assists. The sophomore transfer from Missouri now has 382 assists on the season and is currently averaging 34.7 assists per game. Additionally, Parra has recorded 15 or more kills in each of her last six games for TCU.