Volleyball vs. Hope International | W 3-0 | 25-22, 25-21, 25-13 |
Stats
Vollebyall vs. Biola | L 0-3 | 18-25, 18-25, 14-25 |
Stats
Volleyball at Vanguard | W 3-0 | 25-15, 25-17, 25-23 |
Stats
COSTA MESA, Calif. – Two squads receiving votes at the national level faced off in the Vanguard Volleyball Tournament on
Saturday afternoon. MidAmerica Nazarene University jumped out to an early lead over Vanguard and the Lions could not regroup, dropping the match 3-0 (25-15, 25-17, 25-23). With the loss the Blue and Gold move to 8-6.
MidAmerica took control in the opening set behind four kills and five digs from junior
Linjun Ji (Shanghai, China) and nine digs from libero
Rosan Rivera (Miami, Fla.). The Patriots put up a big block which proved problematic and the Lions made three service errors in the 25-15 set. Pride sophomore Kelly Heenan (Costa Mesa, Calif.) and junior Grace Konstanzer (Irvine, Calif.) recorded six and five digs in the loss.
The Patriot's confidence grew in set two as they found an offensive rhythm. Vanguard kept it close early behind three putdowns from sophomore Jessica Neves (Mission Viejo, Calif.) but after a 7-7 tie MidAmerica pulled away to claim the second frame 25-17. Neves picked up five kills in the set.
The third was back and forth and the Lions claimed some impressive rally points but MNU was determined and pulled away late to take the set 25-23.
Rivera finished the contest with a match-high 21 digs. Ji posted 15 of her own and notched 11 kills. Seniors
Molly Brewster (Lee's Summit, Mo.) and
Megan Hayes (Paola, Kans.) registered 10 and 11 kills while junior setter
Taryn Salum (Chandler, Ariz.) dished out 36 assists to round out the Patriot's effort. MidAmerica Nazarene returns to Kansas with a 6-3 overall record.
