The Bruins women's volleyball team had a strong start to the NCCAA DII National Tournament as the team swept #8 seeded Manhattan Christian College and defeated #5 Arlington Baptist University 3-1 in the opening pool play round. The team will finish up pool play on Thursday against #4 seeded Johnson University (TN) with the hopes of advancing to their third straight final four.
In the first match of the day, the top-seeded Bruins would face #8 Manhattan Christian College who had received an at-large bid to the tournament. Earlier in the day, #2 seeded Maranatha Baptist University had been upset and the Bruins knew they needed to come out strong in their opening game.
Brooke Beaver sparked the Bruins with a kill and an ace as the team jumped out to a 5-1 lead in the opening set. The Bruins kept momentum as Lauren Mukenschnabl served a pair of aces and kills by Victoria Glaze and Katherine Ring sparked nine-straight points as the Bruins took a 14-2 lead. The team never looked back as they won the opening set in convincing fashion 25-9.
In the second set, the Bruins had another hot start thanks to kills by Laura Gaston, Emma Riddle, and Victoria Glaze as the team led 9-2. The Thunder tried to slow the Bruins but Brittany Annand continued to feed the scoring attack as kills by Beaver and Glaze pushed the lead 13-4. From there, the Bruins never looked back as they took the second set 25-11.
The Bruins scored three straight points to open the third set, but the Thunder answered back as they looked to avoid the sweep. After a kill by Brenna Flax, the Thunder took an 8-6 lead but the Bruins kept pace to keep the score close. Near the midway point of the set, the Bruins went on an 8-1 run thanks to kills from Riddle, Gaston, and Glaze. As a result, the Bruins led 16-12 as they closed in for the sweep.
With their backs against the wall, the Thunder battled back to trail BJU 18-16. Manhattan wouldn't score again in the match as the Bruins finished off the Thunder by scoring seven straight points to win the set 25-16 and the match 3-0.
"We really challenged our team to come out and be ready to play," Bruins Head Coach Vickie Denny said. "The team responded well and we got off to a great start in the first two sets. Hats off to Manhattan though as they really pushed us in that third set and played very well."
Victoria Glaze led the Bruins with 9 kills in the match while Laura Gaston finished with 8 and Katherine Ring and Brooke Beaver each had seven. Brittany Annand had a great match with 32 assists while Saleena Walker led the Bruins with 20 digs. Lauren Mukenschnabl provided a great serve for the team with four aces in the win.
In the second match of the day, the Bruins would be paired with #5 Arlington Baptist University who had defeated #4 Johnson University (TN) earlier in the day. The Patriots came out strong in the opening set as they took a 4-2 lead. Arlington fed off the duo of Jessica and Jacquelyn Wells as the pair combined for 22 kills in the match.
The two teams went back and forth with the score remaining close. Near the midway point of the set, the Patriots went on a 6-1 run to take a 16-13 lead. The Bruins fought back but had several unforced errors to allow Arlington to increase their lead. Near the end of the set, an ace by Aubrey Grantham and a kill by Jessica Wells helped the Patriots close out the set to win 25-19 over BJU. That was the first time this season the Bruins had dropped an opening set.
With momentum, the Patriots again jumped out to an early lead. The Bruins responded with a strong serve from Mukenschabl as they scored four straight points to lead 6-5. After trading points, the Patriots went on a 10-1 run as they looked like they would run away with the second set. The Bruins had other plans as the team stormed back scoring eleven straight points to rally and win set two 25-20 to tie the match 1-1.
The Bruins had bounced back and the team rode the energy of their hometown crowd as Saleena Walker served the team to a 5-0 lead in set three. Although the Patriots fought back, the Bruins continued to maintain the upper hand with precision kills and smart defensive play.
A pair of kills by Laura Gaston helped the team take a 17-10 lead as the Bruins looked to close in on the set win. Although the Patriots mounted one last charge, the Bruins held them off as they won set three 25-18 to take a 2-1 lead in the match.
In the fourth set, the score remained close early on with neither team letting the other build a sizable lead. The Patriots eventually scored five straight points to take an 11-9 lead. Undaunted, the Bruins answered back scoring seven straight points to lead 16-11. With the set coming to a close, the Bruins got a pair of kills from Victoria Glaze as the team held on to win the set 25-19 and the match 3-1.
"Losing the first set was the first time that had happened to us this year so we had our backs against the wall," Coach Denny said. "We responded well and changed some things defensively and got some touches and blocks. It was a huge win for us. We needed to be pushed and they pushed us but we responded well."
Katherine Ring, Brooke Beaver, and Victoria Glaze each had 10 kills for the Bruins while Beaver also finished with 15 digs and two aces. Brittany Annand had another masterful setting match as she finished with 44 assists.
Next up, the Bruins will finish their pool play round on Thursday morning with a trip to the final four on the line. The Bruins will face #4 seeded Johnson University (TN) with the match scheduled for 12 p.m. in the Davis Field House.
