The Lady Bruins volleyball team finished regular season play with two wins on Saturday as the team defeated John Wesley University 3-1 and Allen University 3-0 to move to 19-13 on the season. The Bruins closed out the season strong winning six of their last seven games as they head into the NCCAA Division II Regional Tournament next week. It was senior day for the Bruins as they honored Lauren Johnson and Marjorie Elliott who played their last regular season games with the team.
"These two understand what we are all about," Bruins Head Coach Vickie Denny said. "We're really going to miss them but they both have left their imprint on our program and that will never go away."
In their first game of the day, the Bruins battled the Lions of John Wesley University. The Bruins opened up the first set with a kill by Katherine Ring but the Lions came back with a run to take a 12-8 lead. The Bruins called a timeout to try to end the run but the Lions scored two more points out of the timeout to increase the lead. Rachel Tubbs hit her attack into the net as BJU faced a 15-8 deficit. The Bruins finally answered with a 3-0 run that included a kill by Erin Jarvis, a block by Katherine Ring, and an ace by Lauren Johnson. The Lions responded with points of their own as they closed out the Bruins 25-20 to take the opening set.
In the second set, both teams battled to a 3-3 tie early on. Later in the set, Rachel Tubbs landed her 31st ace of the season as the Bruins took a 16-10 lead. The Lions would answer with a 4-0 run and tied the game at 17 apiece. The Bruins called a timeout to stop the bleeding but the Lions continued their pressure and increased their lead to 23-19. With their backs against the wall and in danger of going down 2-0 in the match, Olivia Vosburgh provided the serving touch as she rallied the Bruins to a 6-0 run as the team came back to win the second set 25-23.
"That was critical for us" Coach Denny said. "Losing that set you're down 0-2, but winning it it's 1-1 and that's a whole different ball game."
With a second set victory, the Bruins looked to capitalize on their momentum. The third set was tied at 4-4 early and a service error on the Bruins put the Lions ahead 5-4. Kills by Jarvis and Tubbs helped keep the Bruins within one at 11-10. The Bruins were able to capitalize on several mistakes by JWU as they took the lead and never looked back as the Bruins took set three 25-17 to lead the match 2-1.
The Bruins looked to finish off the Lions with a win in the fourth set. Errors and mishandling the ball continued to plague the Lions and the Bruins were able to jump to a 7-4 lead. The Lions were able to bring it within two at 12-10, but a kill by Katherine Ring helped get the Bruins back on track. The Lions called a timeout to address their struggles and prevent the Bruins from winning the game. Marjorie Elliott came up big for the Bruins down the stretch with her final kill being blocked out of bounds as the Bruins won the set 25-17 and the match 3-1.
In their second match of the day, the Bruins faced the Allen University Yellow Jackets. The Yellow Jackets scored an ace on the first play of the game, but deflections and a kill by Elliott quickly put the Bruins up 4-1. AU battled back as they eventually tied the set 11-11 before blocking Rachel Tubbs at the net to take a 12-11 lead. The Bruins answered the block with a 4-0 run fueled by a block by Ring and kills by Jarvis and Elliott. The run came to an end when Elliott and Gaston were blocked and the ball went out of bounds. A Yellow Jackets service error and a kill by Gaston helped the Bruins reach a 20-15 lead, prompting Allen University to call a timeout. The Yellow Jackets went on a 3-0 run after the timeout to cut the lead to two at 20-18 which forced the Bruins to call a timeout. Both teams battled down the stretch, but the Bruins were able to edge the Yellow Jackets 25-23 to take the first set.
The Bruins got off to a strong start in the second set as service errors by the Yellow Jackets and a kill by Gaston gave the Bruins an 8-5 lead. Despite the back and forth between the two teams, the Bruins were able to take the momentum away from the Yellow Jackets as they went on a 3-0 run to take a 18-15 lead. Gaston got off two back to back kills and Jarvis got a block as AU called a timeout trailing 22-21. Two more Jarvis kills and a wide attack by the Yellow Jackets ended the set with the Bruins winning 25-22 and taking a 2-0 match lead.
The Bruins started off the third set with an ace by Lauren Johnson, her 47th on the season as the team led 2-0. After the Yellow Jackets tied the set 3-3, the Bruins gained the upper hand as their offensive play was dominate in the set. Kills by Jarvis, Gaston, and Vosburgh powered the Bruins to a 10-7 lead over the error-prone Yellow Jackets. Back to back saves by Saleena Walker and Vosburgh, followed by a kill by Elliott and an out of bound block gave the Bruins a 15-10 lead. Still, the Yellow Jackets wouldn't go away as they clawed back to within two 20-18. The Bruins were determined to close the match as they went on a 5-0 run capped off with a Rachel Tubbs kill as the Bruins completed the sweep 3-0 with a 25-18 win.
"We had great teamwork in both matches today" Coach Denny said. "I thought different people stepped up at different times. We really reduced errors and played well as a unit."
Erin Jarvis led the attack for the Bruins with 24 kills on the day while Laura Gaston had 19 and Katherine Ring and Rachel Tubbs each finished with 16. Saleena Walker had 77 digs on the day as the Bruins back line played well defensively. With the win, the Bruins have won three straight and sit at 19-13 and 6-1 in region play as they finish the regular season. The team will await final seeding as they prepare for the NCCAA DII South Regional Tournament next week in Toccoa, Georgia.
