The Bruins volleyball team closed out preseason play on a high note as the team defeated Southern Wesleyan University in straight sets 3-0 (25-16, 25-11, 25-14) on Tuesday night in the Davis Field House. The Bruins will open the regular season this weekend at home with four matches on deck.
"I liked what we did tonight," Bruins Head Coach Vickie Denny said. "In these preseason scrimmages, we are trying different combinations and players in different positions to see what works well. I was especially happy with our serve/serve receive game."
The Bruins came Tuesday's match on the heels of back to back losses in a pair of exhibition matches on Saturday. With one final tune-up to end preseason, the Bruins and Warriors took the court in front of the Bruin faithful.
In the opening set, the two teams traded points early on before a pair of kills by Emily Ellis sparked a run for the Warriors as SWU took a 7-2 lead. The Bruins came right back as Victoria Glaze recorded an ace and Kayla Obertsar a kill to help the Bruins battle back and trail 9-6.
Near the midway point of the set, the Bruins got a spark as kills from Glaze and Oberstar helped them inch closer to the Warrior lead. After an ace by Jesse Soles, the Warriors led the Bruins 16-13. That was the last point SWU would score as the Bruins went on a big 12-0 run to close out the set to win 25-16.
The second set began much like the first with the score remaining close in the early goings. Freshman Camila Silva gave the Bruins a 7-6 lead with a kill, before an 8-2 run gave BJU a 15-8 lead. The Warriors tried to claw their way back into the set, but the Bruins continued to push their lead as another kill by Silva helped the Bruins close out set two 25-11.
With a sweep in sight, the Bruins came out looking to finish strong. Both teams traded points before a kill by Emma Riddle sparked a 6-0 run for the Bruins as the team took a 10-4 lead. The Warriors bounced back with three straight points but the Bruins continued to maintain their lead thanks to kills from Timbre Cruz and Victoria Glaze.
As the set began to come to a close, the Warriors again scored three straight points thanks to kills from Amber Bass and Lexie Cummins, but the Bruins still led 15-11. Victoria Glaze then served back to back aces to spark another 6-0 run as the Bruins led 21-11. From there, the team never looked back as Kayla Oberstar hammered down a kill to complete the sweep as the Bruins won set three 25-14.
Victoria Glaze led the Bruins with 12 kills and 3 aces while Kayla Oberstar finished with 9 kills. Katelyn Landkrohn had 8 digs in the match while Rachel Pattisal, Hannah Prince, and Timbre Cruz combined for 19 assists on the night.
Next up, the Bruins will open the regular season on Friday with a pair of matches. The first match will begin at 4 p.m. as the Bruins take on Columbia College in Greenville, South Carolina.
