The Bruins volleyball team opened the 2021 regular season with back to back sweeps on Friday afternoon in day one of the Labor Day tournament in Greenville, South Carolina. The Bruins were able to find their rhythm as they swept Columbia College (25-22, 25-20, 25-11).
"Today was a great start to our season," Bruins Head Coach Vickie Denny said. "We continue to work through different combinations of lineups and it is good to see different players stepping up at different times like they did today."
Coming into Friday's tri-match, the Bruins had played four preseason matches but finished their scrimmages strong with a 3-0 sweep of Southern Wesleyan University on Tuesday.
For the first match of the day, the Bruins would be paired with Columbia College (SC). The first set was evenly matched as neither team was able to take a sizable lead. Eventually, the two teams would pull even at 11-11. Back and forth they went before Camila Silva and Victoria Glaze made kills to give the Bruins a 19-15 lead. The Koalas battled back but the Bruins held Columbia College at bay as Emma Riddle made a kill to win the set 25-22.
In the second set, the Bruins came out strong as the team built a 9-1 lead out of the gate. The Bruins continued to maintain their upper hand, but the Koalas slowly chipped away at the lead eventually battling back to trail BJU 20-18. Again, the Bruins were able to make key plays as a kill by Bailee Hunger helped BJU win set two 25-20.
The Bruins had a sweep on their minds as they began set three and it showed as the team used kills from Kayla Oberstar and Bailee Hunger to build a 5-1 lead. But again, the Koalas came right back as they trailed BJU 9-8.
The Bruins then scored six straight points thanks to back to back aces from Timbre Cruz and kills from Camila Silva and Victoria Glaze. The Bruins had seized the momentum of the set and never looked back as they cruised to a 25-11 win in set three to complete the sweep.
Victoria Glaze led the Bruins with 11 kills and 8 digs while Timbre Cruz finished the match with four aces. Kayla Oberstar led the Bruins defensively with 14 digs while Rachel Pattisall made 16 assists in the match.
The Bruins then were back on the court later in the evening as the team welcomed Agnes Scott College. The Scotties had just fell short in their previous match to Columbia College and were looking to bounce back.
In the opening set, the Bruins came out strong thanks to four-straight aces from Rachel Pattisall as the team led 5-0. The Bruins kept their momentum as their serve found holes in the Scotties' defense to lead 11-3. From there, the Bruins kept up their impressive play as they won set one 25-9.
The Scotties bounced back at the beginning of set two as the score remained close in the early goings. Agnes Scott even took the lead thanks to scoring four straight points as BJU trailed 14-12. The Bruins battled back and closed out the set scoring six-straight points as they took set two 25-19.
In set three, the Bruins looked to wrap up the win and end the day with back to back sweeps. Victoria Glaze and Kayla Oberstar each made kills for the Bruins early on as the team led 6-2. The Scotties fought back but the Bruins continued to keep the lead. Near the midway point of the set, a kill from Oberstar pushed the BJU lead to 17-12. Although the Scotties mounted one last rally, the Bruins were able to hold them off as they completed the sweep with a 25-18 win in set three.
Victoria Glaze had seven kills in the match while Timbre Cruz and Kayla Oberstar finished with six kills a piece. Rachel Pattisall finished the match with six aces as the Bruins moved to 2-0 to begin the season.
Next up, the Bruins will be back at it tomorrow afternoon as the team plays matches at 12 p.m. and 2 p.m. Their opponents will be decided based on the results from earlier matches in the day.
