The Bruins volleyball team saw their six-match winning streak come to a close on Friday as the team played a pair of matches in the opening day of the Tornado Classic at Brevard College in Brevard, North Carolina. The Bruins defeated Salem College 3-1 before falling to Huntingdon College 3-1 as the team improves to 7-5 on the season.
"There were some positive takeaways from today," Bruins Head Coach Vickie Denny said. "I liked how we regrouped when we were down and kept playing hard. We just need to find consistency where we reduce our errors especially when we go against these stronger teams."
The Bruins came into the weekend after battling to a 3-2 win over Brevard College on Thursday night in the Davis Field House. The win marked the fifth in a row for the team and the Bruins looked to continue that momentum as the team took the court on Friday in their first match against Salem College.
In the opening set, the Bruins took an early lead as a pair of kills by Timbre Cruz helped the team take a 6-3 advantage. The Bruins continued to build momentum as kills from Camila Silva and Katherine Hoopes extended the lead to 14-7.
The Spirits came battling back as the team went on a run eventually tying the set at 17-17. From there, the score remained close but Salem was able to narrowly grab the opening set 25-23.
In the second set, the Bruins came out looking to bounce back and even the match. The Spirits took the early lead as kills from Valeria Rosa Lopez helped Salem jump out to a 10-5 advantage. Undaunted, the Bruins battled back as an 11-2 run gave the team a 20-17 lead. The Spirits and Bruins went back and forth but this time it was BJU who would find the late set heroics as they evened the match 1-1 with a 25-22 win in the second set.
The Bruins carried that momentum into the third set as an ace from Katelyn Landkrohn and a kill from Faith Blalock helped the team jump out to a 5-2 lead. The Spirits began to chip away at the lead but the Bruins continued to maintain the upper hand thanks to great passing and defensive play.
After Camila Silva and Faith Blalock made kills, the Bruins extended their lead to 18-12. The Bruins then went on to take a 2-1 lead in the match as Emma Riddle hammered down a kill to win the set 25-18.
In the fourth set, the Bruins came out looking to put the match away. Both teams traded points in the early stages of the set as the score remained close. The Bruins then went on a 6-1 run thanks to kills from Katherine Hoopes as the team took a 10-8 lead. The Spirits answered back and cut into the Bruins lead.
The Bruins continued to make great plays at key times as a kill from Emma Riddle and a kill from Katherine Hoopes helped the team increase their lead 22-17. From there, the Bruins held off a last chance rally by the Spirits as the team went on to win the set 25-17 and the match 3-1.
Four players recorded double-digit kills for the Bruins with Katherine Hoopes leading the way with 17 kills and 17 digs in the match. Kiersten Hoopes had a strong match for the Bruins with 56 assists while Timbre Cruz led the way defensively for the Bruins with 22 digs.
In the second match of the day, the Bruins would face Huntingdon College. The Bruins and Hawks met last week in Alabama with Huntingdon coming away with a 3-1 victory.
The Bruins came out with back to back points in the opening set but the Hawks responded with a 5-0 run to grab the early lead. The two teams battled back and forth before a 7-0 run by the Hawks allowed the team to push their lead 22-16. Although the Bruins would rally late in the set, the deficit was too much to overcome as Huntingdon took set one 25-20.
In the second set, the Hawks came out strong as they went on a 9-1 run to open the set. The Bruins tried to find a way to slow the Hawks, but Huntingdon had found their rhythm as kills allowed the team to increase their lead. Kennedy Chambers then gave the Hawks a 2-0 lead in the match as Huntingdon won handily in set two 25-12.
With their backs against the wall, the Bruins came out looking to avoid the sweep. The two teams traded points and the lead in the early stages of the set but back to back kills by Emma Riddle helped the Bruins lead 9-7.
The Hawks came right back but the Bruins matched Huntingdon point for point as the set eventually tied at 21-21. From there, the Bruins got three straight points capped off with a kill from Camila Silva as the Bruins forced a fourth set with a 25-23 win in set three.
With momentum, the Bruins came out hoping to continue their comeback and force a fifth set. The score remained close in the early stages of set four before an 8-0 run by the Hawks pushed their lead to 16-7. The Bruins tried to battle back, but couldn't close the gap as Huntingdon finished off BJU with a 25-13 win in set four to win the match 3-1.
Katherine Hoopes was the only player in double figures for kills as she finished with 10 in the match. Eden Swihart and Kiersten Hoopes combined for 31 assists while Timbre Cruz led the Bruins with 14 digs.
"We will need to find a consistency of play where we reduce our errors especially when we go against these stronger teams," Coach Denny said. "We cannot afford to make so many mistakes and expect to compete with these teams."
Next up, the Bruins will wrap up their weekend road trip on Saturday as the team plays a pair of matches against Brevard College and Methodist University.
