The Lady Bruins volleyball team opened their region schedule on Friday with back to back wins as the team swept Johnson University - Florida (3-0) before defeating Pensacola Christian College (3-1). With the wins, the Bruins improve to 5-1 on the season and 2-0 in region play.
"We faced two very good teams today," Bruins Head Coach Vickie Denny said. "I thought our players did a good job of competing today and we had a lot of great contributions throughout both of our matches."
The Bruins welcomed five other teams from the NCCAA DII South Region for the annual tip-off tournament. The teams played on dual courts with great volleyball being played throughout the afternoon and evening.
For the first match of the day, the Bruins faced off against Johnson University (FL). The Bruins came into the home opener having never lost to the Suns in their four-year history.
In the opening set, the Bruins jumped out to an early lead thanks to back to back kills by Victoria Glaze. The Suns didn't let the Bruins pull away as they were able to take advantage of the Bruins mistakes to rally back to tie the set at 15-15. Coach Denny called a timeout which proved to be exactly what the Bruins needed as Laura Gaston sparked the Bruins on a 7-0 run to help the team close out the first set 25-17.
With momentum, the Bruins came out strong in the second set as kills by Glaze and Emma Riddle helped the Bruins take a 7-1 lead. The Suns tried to slow the Bruins down but kills by Brittany Annand and Laura Gaston kept the Bruins firing on all cylinders as the team lead 17-4. The Bruins never looked back as they rolled to a 25-7 win in the second set to take a 2-0 match lead.
The Suns wanted to avoid a sweep, but three straight aces from Emma Riddle helped the Bruins take a 6-3 lead. The Suns fought back as they went on a 5-0 run to take a 15-13 lead. The Bruins answered right back with a run of their own as Gaston and Abby Plew picked apart the Sun's defense with kills. Katherine Ring ended the match with an emphatic kill as the Bruins won the third set 25-20 to complete the sweep 3-0.
"We were working as a team very well," Freshman Victoria Glaze said. Glaze finished with 6 kills and 5 digs in the win. "Our passes and sets were on which led to open kills for us."
Brooke Beaver led the Bruins with 11 kills in the match while also contributing 15 digs. Brittany Annand finished the match with 34 assists as the Bruins swept their home opener.
With little rest, the Bruins were back on the court against a familiar foe as they faced rivial Pensacola Christian College. The Eagles came into the match looking to avenge a loss earlier in the day in a five-set thriller to Johnson University (FL).
The Eagles jumped out to an early lead in the opening set as errors by the Bruins gave PCC points. Victoria Glaze brought the Bruins back with back to back kills but the Eagles answered right back with a run of their own as the two teams continued to battle.
Near the midway point of the set, kills by Ring and Glaze and two straight aces by Laura Gaston helped the Bruins take a 13-9 lead. Glaze proved dominant for the Bruins down the stretch as the freshman recorded three straight kills en route to a 7-1 run as the Bruins took the opening set 25-20.
The Bruin faithful were on their feet as the hometown crowd was in full force cheering the Bruins on in set two. The Eagles silenced the crowd as they jumped out to another 4-1 lead. The Bruins began to chip away at the lead, but costly attack and service errors allowed the Eagles to maintain the upper hand.
With the second set coming to a close, the Bruins pulled within two at 22-20. An error by the Bruins and kills by Jasmine Baldonado and Tiffany Dover gave the Eagles the edge as PCC evened the match at 1-1 with a 25-20 set win.
The Bruins knew their errors had cost them the set and they came out looking to avenge the loss. It showed as the Bruins stormed out to a 9-1 advantage thanks to three kills from Laura Gaston and a kill from Jeanna Bush. The Eagles were back on their heels and the Bruins didn't let up as they continued to pick apart the Eagle defense, finding holes for kills. PCC strung together a short run, but the deficit was too much to overcome as the Bruins won the third set 25-14.
With the crowd again energized, the Eagles came out again and put a stop to the Bruins momentum with a 5-1 lead. The Eagles kept on rolling as two straight kills from Piper Bledsoe increased the lead to 10-4. The Eagles looked determined to force a fifth and final set but the Bruins had other plans as the team went on an 8-1 run to come back and take a 17-14 lead.
The Eagles called a timeout, hoping to stop the Bruins run and calm the crowd. It backfired as Abby Plew closed out the match for the Bruins with four aces in the final eight points as the Bruins won the set 25-15 and the match 3-1.
"When everyone is building each other up it is a lot easier to stay focused mentality and finish the play strong," Plew said after the win.
Victoria Glaze led the way with 17 kills in the match while Laura Gaston had 11 and Brooke Beaver had 9. Brittany Annand had another stellar setting performance with 48 assists in the match.
With the wins, the Bruins open the region schedule with back to back wins while improving their overall record to 5-1. The team will finish off the tip-off tournament tomorrow as they host Trinity College (FL) and Trinity Baptist College at the Davis Field House.
