The fans got their first look at the 2021 Bruins volleyball team on Saturday night as the team played the battle of the blues intrasquad scrimmage at the Davis Field House. Over 400 fans came out as the team competed in five sets (25-21, 25-16, 25-9, 25-20, 15-12).
"These intrasquad scrimmages are always fun and a great way for us to see a lot of different combinations of lineups," Bruins Head Coach Vickie Denny said. "We had some of returners playing different positions from last year and they looked good. I was also impressed with several of our freshmen and their contributions tonight."
The Bruins arrived on campus earlier this week and have been in preseason training since Thursday. Saturday's scrimmage gave the team a chance to test out a variety of combinations and lineups with several players providing highlights throughout the night.
In the opening set, both teams went back and forth with the score remaining close throughout. Victoria Glaze powered her side with pinpoint kills, but neither team was able to pull away as the first set eventually ended 25-21.
The players began to find their rhythm in set two and some of the freshmen made the most of their debut in front of the hometown fans as Emily Via and Camila Silva each made kills for their side throughout the set. Timbre Cruz hammered down a kill to conclude the second set with the score 25-16.
In the third set, Coach Denny continued to mix up the lineups placing players in different combinations on each side. This set proved to be more lopsided as the score ended 25-9.
The teams regrouped and began set four with the score remaining close throughout the set. Near the end of the fourth set, Emily Via made a kill to give her team set point but Courtney Campbell helped fuel a rally to record back to back points 24-20. After a service error, set four ended 25-20.
For the fifth and final set, the teams changed up their lineups yet again. Bailee Hunger gave her team a spark with a big kill to make it 5-2 early on but Camila Silva rallied her side with five straight points to make it 7-5. The two teams went back and forth eventually drawing even at 11-11. Timbre Cruz put her side in position to win with a nice ace to make it 14-12. The other side couldn't rally as the set ended 15-12 to conclude the match.
Next up, the Bruins will play their first preseason exhibition on August 28 as the team will play a tri-match against Reinhardt University and Covenant College in Lookout Mountain, Georgia.
