Volleyball fans gathered for the team’s final game of the regular season for Smoot Fever Night in the University Center. This last home game was against the University of Central Arkansas, a team the Lady Lions had yet to beat. Fans and students were encouraged to wear Hawaiian shirts to show support and win a prize for the person who was best dressed. Tropical games and other promotions were also available before the game began.
Coordinator of Athletic Marketing and Promotions Lindsey Cramer explained how this event came to be.
“We chose to do this event after we realized our Head Coach, Jim Smoot, enjoys wearing Hawaiian shirts,” said Cramer. “One of the hashtags started last year when someone tweeted out ‘#SmootFever,’ and we adapted to it; we loved it. So, this year when we were planning our promotional events for the semester, we embraced ‘Smoot Fever Night’ as a night to wear your best Hawaiian shirt or tropical attire especially with it being mid-November.”
In the beginning of the first set, the Lady Lions (13-17, 7-9 Southland) started off strong with a 5-2 lead, but the Sugar Bears remained close behind. Halfway into the set, Central Arkansas took the lead 15-16, and although the Lady Lions took back the lead for the next three plays, changing the score to 18-16, the Sugar Bears continued to steal the lead until the end of the set, finishing at a close 23-25. Multiple kills were made by junior middle blocker and outside hitter Landry Bullock, junior outside hitter and right sider Parrie Hartley, sophomore outside hitter and right sider Sarah Friedman and senior middle blocker Veronica Turk. Senior setter Mikayla Shippy made 13 assists along with a service ace. One successful block was also made by Friedman and junior middle blocker Rachael Bunn in the first set.
Halfway into the second set, the game changed for the Lady Lions as they took the lead when Hartley made a kill while assisted by freshman setter Haley Baker.
Reflecting on that game-changing moment, Hartley felt as though she would not have made it without her teammates.
“I feel like it was a complete team effort,” said Hartley. “We all came together and worked hard. We’ve had a rough couple of weeks, but we came back and pushed.”
From this play onward, the team continued to lead throughout the set with multiple kills by Bunn, Turk, Hartley and junior outside hitter Madi Odom, who also made a service ace. Baker made a service ace and nine assists. The Lady Lions finished the set 25-21.
During halftime, tropical themed games were held as various fans competed for prizes.
Students junior business administration major Paulo Casanova III and junior graphic design major Collin Rowland went head to head to compete for a week’s worth of Chick-fil-A, along with a Southeastern cup and a pair of sunglasses, with Rowland being crowned the winner of the first halftime game.
Starting off on top for the third, the Lady Lions lead the entire set, finishing 25-20.
For the fourth set, the team trailed behind but not without giving their efforts. Since the Sugar Bears won the fourth set 10-25, they put themselves up at 2-2, forcing the game to go into a fifth set.
The two teams were never more than three points apart until nearly the end when an attack error made by the Sugar Bears put the Lady Lions up by four. The gap between the teams continued to expand and contract until the very end when Hartley and Turk made a successful block. The team finished out 16-14 in the end, making this game the first victory over Central Arkansas in school history.
“It was honestly bittersweet because I know it was my last time to ever play here, ” said Turk. “But, it was one of the best feelings because I know we’ve never beaten them. As seniors, we had a goal. Our goal was to beat them, out of our four years, and we did. It was one of the best feelings and one of the best ways to end my last game here.”
Smoot decided to carry a light-hearted attitude about the event, feeling it had a positive impact on the overall atmosphere of the game.
“They [Marketing and Promotions] told me before school even started that they were going to do it, ” said Smoot. “I kind of snickered and went ‘okay, I’ll go along with it,’ I think the spirit of it was good. You want to have fun and that’s what the crowd should be doing when they’re coming to the matches and it should be enjoyable.”
Players enjoyed the event and found it to be amusing.
“I love it,” said Hartley. “I think it’s hilarious. When he first got here, we were always saying ‘why does he have all these Hawaiian shirts?’ because that’s all he would wear, so for them to make a night out of it, I think it’s really cool, and it gets the crowd involved and more people going so I like it.”
After Smoot Fever Night came to an end, Smoot explained how the trend of his shirts came to be, while adding more on how he truly felt about the event.
“I think it’s the way that people should dress all the time,” said Smoot. “It might come from when one year I coached the men’s team at the University of Hawaii, but no, I thought it was fun. I’ve worn the shirts all of my life. I’m from three miles from the beach of southern California. I maybe do it to be a little obnoxious or unusual too.”
To see the final winning moment from this game, check out The Lion’s Roar page on Facebook. For more information on the tournament, visit lionsports.net.