The Bruins women's volleyball team pushed their winning streak to six-straight matches as the team swept Judson College and Pensacola Christian College 3-0 on Saturday afternoon in Pensacola, Florida. With the wins, the Bruins are now 22-5 on the season and remain a perfect 8-0 in region play.
"It was a great team effort all around," Bruins Head Coach Vickie Denny said. "So often different people stepped up at different times to contribute to our wins today."
In the first match of the day, the Bruins would be up against Judson College. With a couple of players on the mend with injury, Coach Denny looked to several reserve players to fill the void and they didn't disappoint as the Bruins jumped out to an early lead in the opening set and didn't look back with a dominant 25-8 win.
Jamie Grimes and Abby Plew provided a spark for the team while Brittany Annand had great setting for the team as they continued to ride their momentum in set two. Again, a dominant run provided the Bruins a sizeable lead which the Flames never recovered from as BJU took a 2-0 lead in the match with another 25-8 win in set two.
With a sweep in their sights, the Bruins came out strong again in the third set. Timely kills by BJU forced the Flames into several errors as the Bruins closed out the match winning 25-13 in the final set.
The night cap for the Bruins came against their rival Pensacola Christian College. The Bruins and Eagles had met twice in the 2018 season with BJU winning both matches (3-0, 3-2). The Eagles were hoping their home court advantage would stop the Bruins in their tracks.
The Eagles came out strong as they looked to take the opening set. Big blocking up front from PCC left the Bruins struggling to get points. Eventually, the Eagles would build a 24-19 lead as they looked to close out the set. Brooke Beaver had other plans as the freshman stepped to serve and served the Bruins to seven-straight points as BJU rallied to steal set one 26-24.
Defense was the story of the second set as Katherine Ring, Jordan Anderson and Laura Gaston provided excellent blocking up front for the Bruins to limit the PCC attack. As a result, the Bruins were able to take a lead and closed out the Eagles 25-15 to take a 2-0 lead in the match.
With their backs against the wall, the Eagles came out strong hoping not to be swept on their home court. The Eagles went on a run as they looked to claw their way back into the match. Coach Denny called a timeout as she looked to stop the PCC run. Captain Rachel Williams would do just that as she came up with an incredible block to stop the Eagles' momentum. The Bruins would rally to take the lead and never looked back as they closed out the match with a 25-20 win in set three.
"We struggled initially with some of our passing game but we were able to recover and play some solid defense for the win," Coach Denny said.
Rachel Williams led the Bruins with 31 assists in the match. Defensively, Saleena Walker had 21 digs while Brooke Beaver and Courtney Bates also had double-figures in digs with 11 each. Beaver also led the Bruins in kills with 11 in the match while Laura Gaston recorded 8 kills.
With two sweeps on Saturday, the Lady Bruins have now swept nineteen opponents this season. Next up, the Bruins will be on the road again on Thursday as they battle Johnson and Wales University in Charlotte, North Carolina.
