SAN ANTONIO - The No. 3 Trinity University volleyball team won its fourth in a row, eighth-consecutive to start the season in Calgaard Gym, Tuesday night with a 3-1 mark over NAIA Our Lady of the Lake University in a make-up of the match originally scheduled for September 1.

A trio of Tigers landed in double-digits in kills, seniors outside hitters Annie Rose Leggett (Austin, Texas / Westwood) and Avery Tuggle (Cedar Creek, Texas / Cedar Creek) along with middle blocker Emma Funk (Pass Christian, Miss. / Our Lady). All three Tigers did so while also hitting over .300, especially Funk's .450 mark.

Funk and senior rightside hitter Sara Flynn (Seattle, Wash. / Roosevelt) combined to create the most notable margin on the statsheet for Trinity over the Saints; each of the duo notched four blocks, which led to an 8-1 advantage in total blocks for the match.

Leggett and Tuggle also dominated the back row defensively with 20 and 16 digs, respectively, giving them each another double-double.

Senior setter Alexis Acevedo (San Antonio, Texas / Incarnate Word) narrowly edged out her junior counterpart, Marisa Amarino (Calabasas, Calif. / Notre Dame) in signal-calling duties at 22 assists to the latter's 19.

The Rundown

Funk fuelled the hot start to open the match, a consistent theme for the 2021 season, with a pair of kills in the first four points which led Trinity to a 10-3 advantage. The seven-point margin was met three more times in the frame before OLLU mounted a comeback bid as it came within one point twice before the Tigers shut the door, 25-20.

Trinity took the Saints' best shot in the midweek matchup as Trinity ceded a set for the first time since it returned from the East to West Battle on September 11 in the second frame of Tuesday's bout. The reciprocated 25-20 tally featured eight tied scores between draws at 5-5 and 16-16.

Ten more tied scores occurred in the early portion of the third frame, at nearly every point up to a 12-12 draw. Just moments later, the Tigers regained control of the match on a strike from Leggett for an 18-14 advantage. The reigning SCAC Player of the Week sealed the third frame with back-to-back service aces.

The Tigers returned to form in the final set as they stretched out to an 11-point margin quickly at 16-5 and held the same margin by the conclusion. Junior middle blocker Brette Thornton (Rockwall, Texas / Rockwall) collected all three of her kills for the match in the final frame as Trinity iced the Saints.

Coach Speak

"Our Tigers played against a very talented Our Lady of the Lake team," said Head Coach Julie Jenkins; "we knew that they would be scrappy and aggressive toward our block. After starting off high-error, the Tigers were able to settle down and run an extremely balanced offense.

"We had three Tigers in double-digits: Emma, Avery and Annie. We also ended the match with great blocking, especially from Emma, Willie and Flynn. It's good momentum going into the weekend; they showed great mental toughness."

Up Next

No. 3 Trinity Volleyball heads to Colorado Springs, Colorado to open Southern Collegiate Athletic Conference action with matches against University of St. Thomas and Texas Lutheran University Friday before another nationally-anticipated contest, with No. 4 Colorado College, Saturday.

The Tigers remain on the road for five consecutive weekend tournaments, all but one, the October 8-9 trip to Boston, Massachusetts, in SCAC play.