No. 18 TCU’s Comeback Bid Falls Short in Five-Set Battle

Friday, October 25

Waco, Texas

5 PM

TCU

14-5,6-3Big 12

Baylor

13-6,5-3Big 12

TCU

Baylor

No. 18 TCU’s Comeback Bid Falls Short in Five-Set Battle

10/25/2024 9:27:00 PM | Women's Volleyball

Box Score

Horned Frogs fall to No. 23 Baylor on the road

WACO, Texas – Battling for five sets on the road, No. 18 TCU volleyball's comeback attempt fell short as No. 23 Baylor pulled away late in a decisive fifth set on Friday night.

The Horned Frogs (14-5, 6-3 Big 12) gave everything they had against a scrappy Baylor (13-6, 5-3 Big 12) team in enemy territory. A season-high 12 service errors and 11 aces allowed proved costly, giving the Bears an edge in the serve and pass game.

Melanie Parra led TCU with an impressive 24 kills on a .350 clip for her 11^th 20-kill match of the season, but it was Baylor's Elise McGhee who paced the field, racking up 30 kills and six aces for the Bears. Jalyn Gibson tallied 14 kills and 11 digs to the Frogs' scoring efforts. Freshman Evan Hendrix also added a career-high eight kills off the bench.

TCU and Baylor traded leads in the early points of the match. With both teams looking for a spark, an upheld challenge call and three straight aces shifted the momentum in the Bears' favor, turning into a 4-0 run at the media break. The Frogs continued to fight back, tying the set up at 17 and sticking with Baylor until the two were tied at 23 all, but the Bears hung on and closed out a tightly contested first set 25-23.

Trailing by a set, TCU responded in the second to even the score. The Frogs jumped out to an early 9-5 lead, forcing Baylor to burn a timeout. Out of the break, the Bears tied the score back at 12-12, but Parra kick-started a 5-0 run to put TCU back in control. Again, Baylor clawed back to tie the score at 21, but the Frogs remained composed as Parra and Gibson helped close out the set with a 25-22 score.

All even at one set apiece, it was the Bears who grabbed the early lead in set three. They extended the lead to seven, being the first team to 20. TCU tried to chip away, but Baylor took care of business for a 25-20 set victory.

Fighting to stay alive in the match, the Frogs locked into a do-or-die fourth set. TCU and Baylor saw 13 ties and nine lead changes alone in the fourth as both teams emptied the tank. Just when a three-point swing put the Bears in front 17-15, Hendrix silenced the crowd with her fourth kill of the match and lit a fire for the Frogs. The freshman sparked a 10-1 run to end the set and extend the match.

Looking to carry their momentum into the fifth set, TCU scored three straight points to take an 8-6 lead as the two teams swapped benches at the media timeout. Baylor managed to side out and take back all the energy, ending the match on a 9-0 run to spoil the Frogs' comeback bid.

No. 18 TCU is back in action, opening a three-match homestand on Wednesday, Oct. 30, against Colorado in Schollmaier Arena at 6:30 p.m. CT.

For all the latest TCU volleyball news, follow the Frogs on X at @TCUVolleyball, on Instagram at @tcuvolleyball and on Facebook at TCU Volleyball.