The No. 5-seeded Wichita State volleyball team opened their American Conference Championship run in Tampa, Fla., against No. 4-seeded North Texas on Friday afternoon.

The Shockers swept the Mean Green in a dominant 3-0 sweep in the first round, knocking UNT out of the tournament and avenging their five-set loss in October. Wichita State also continued its form from last year’s American Conference Championship in which it didn’t drop a single set.

Junior outside Sydney Dunning led the Shockers in their sweep with 20 kills on a .512 kill percentage.

“My teammates and my coaches are behind me,” Dunning said in a postgame interview with ESPN+. “Lots of communication happening. Love them.”

The Mean Green took the first point of set one and remained in the lead as Wichita State never trailed by more than three points after a 4-1 run to begin the set.

The Shockers stood strong after a brief UNT three-point lead until they put together a 4-0 run to take their first lead, 16-15.

Trading back blows to tie at 18, Wichita State made a 5-0 run, including two kills by Dunning.

Redshirt senior right-side Brooklyn Leggett closed out the opening frame with a kill to cap off a 7-2 for a 25-20 set win. The Shocker offense was anchored by Leggett and Dunning, who had six and seven kills, respectively, in the set.

A litany of errors plagued set two for both teams, as they both got in their own way. After a service error by junior setter Jordan Heatherly to put the Shockers down 9-6, WSU went on a 7-1 run with four different players recording at least one kill to retake the lead.

Good offense by the Shockers along with timely blocks set Wichita State up for another 25-20 set win as UNT’s defense looked a step behind.

Despite both teams having four blocks each, Wichita State’s defense owned the middle for the entire game, forcing the Mean Green to rely on aerial attack.

Up 2-0 in the third set, Wichita State met a more determined UNT team early on. After WSU took a 4-1 lead, the Mean Green battled back-and-forth to keep the game within two points, eventually culminating in a 5-0 run in which they took the lead, 13-12.

It was short-lived, however, as the outside duo of Dunning and Leggett came alive to contribute to a 5-0 run, each contributing two kills.

Heatherly found connections throughout the entire match, putting up 37 assists alone. Heatherly matched the number of assists the Mean Green had as a team.

After a 3-0 run by UNT made the score 17-16, Wichita State made another 5-0 run, including two service aces by redshirt junior libero Gabi Maas.

Dunning scored Wichita State’s last three points to take the game, sending them to the semifinals to play Rice.

The game against the Owls is scheduled for Saturday, Nov. 22, at 11 p.m. CST, and can be streamed on ESPN+.

Set wins       1   2   3   4   5

WSU             X   X   X   

UNT                   

Scorelines

S1: 25-20 (WSU)

S2: 25-20 (WSU)

S3: 25-18 (WSU)

Leaders

Kills — WSU: Sydney Dunning (20), Brooklyn Leggett (14), Emerson Wilford (5). UNT: Jahniya Jackson (10), Reagan Bedell (6), Lilly Croshaw (7).

Assists — WSU: Jordan Heatherly (37), Gabi Maas (7). UNT: Sidney Soria (15), Alexa Washington (14), Dakota Mitchell (7).

Digs — WSU: Gabi Maas (16), Grace Hett (6), Katie Galligan (6). UAB: Alexa Washington (8), Dakota Mitchell (8), Alessandra Romo (5).

Points — WSU: Sydney Dunning (21.5), Brooklyn Leggett (14.5), Emerson Wilford (5.5). UNT: Reagan Bedell (11), Jahniya Jackson (10.5), Addison Achilles (7.5).

Editor’s note: This story has been updated for correct seeding.