SAN ANTONIO – The 17th-ranked Trinity University volleyball team split its first two matches of a Southern Athletic Association weekend, winning 3-1 over Southwestern University (TX) after falling 3-1 to Millsaps College (MS) earlier in the day.
The Tigers (15-8, 7-6 SAA) lost 21-25, 25-15, 23-25, and 23-25 to the Majors (14-8, 5-6) to start the day, then rallied for the Friday split by defeating the Pirates (16-9, 7-6) 20-25, 25-22, 25-18, and 25-16. Trinity held Southwestern to a hitting percentage under .200 in all four sets, finishing strong offensively by hitting over .300 in the final two games. Millsaps hit nearly .270 in the first match of the day and the Tigers were held to just .221 against the Majors.
Courtney Pope (New Braunfels, Texas / Canyon) finished the opening match with a career-high 19 kills and a .471 hitting percentage on 34 attacks.
Taylor Starr (Southlake, Texas / Carroll) hit .545 with six kills and tied for the team lead with four blocks.
Lauren McCarthy (Corrales, N.M. / Horizon) also had four blocks and was second only to Pope with nine kills in the match.
Lily Long (Glenview, Ill. / New Trier) and
Connelley McWilliams (Austin, Texas / St. Michael's) finished with seven kills each, with Long adding nine digs to her stat line.
Annabelle Lanik (Sugar Land, Texas / St. John's) led the team with 15 digs against Millsaps, while also recording three service aces to tie with McCarthy for the team lead.
Kendall DeRivel (Westlake Village, Calif. / Viewpoint) and
Emma Reeves (Plano, Texas / East) tallied 44 total assists with DeRivel edging out her fellow setter for the team lead with 23.
Pope once again led the team offensively against Southwestern, piling up 17 more kills and a .393 hitting percentage. McWilliams also hit double figures against the Pirates, finishing with 12 kills (one shy of her career best) and a hitting percentage of .429. Long picked up nine kills, with McCarthy and
Amelia Payton (Acworth, Ga. / Harrison) each totaling seven kills in the match. McCarthy also had a team-best six blocks in the second match, with Pope and Starr both finishing with five blocks of their own. DeRivel and Reeves upped their total assists to 51 against Southwestern, with DeRivel once again holding the edge with 26, and Reeves recording a career-best 25 assists. DeRivel also served up five aces in the match, finishing just one short of her career high. Lanik paced the back line defense with 12 digs, followed closely by Long with 10. Reeves added eight digs of her own and DeRivel finished with six digs.
The Rundown: Millsaps
Trinity and Millsaps traded scores to start the opening set, though Millsaps scored three straight to take a 7-5 lead that they would not relinquish the rest of the way. The Tigers never scored more than twice in a row after that and the Majors cruised to a 1-0 lead. The second set was once again an even battle until Trinity scored four straight to break a 6-6 tie and take control. McWilliams and Long both had kills to start, then McCarthy had back-to-back aces to finish off the run. Just a few points later, Starr and Pope had consecutive kills and then combined for a block to put the Tigers up 14-8. That was the start of what became an 8-1 run that featured three more kills from Pope and a 19-9 lead for Trinity. Millsaps answered with four straight scores but it was too little too late as the Tigers held on for the relatively easy win.
The teams traded short runs early in the third but Trinity led 11-9 after scoring four of five points. Millsaps answered with a 10-1 run of its own to take all the momentum and pull ahead 19-12. The Tigers chipped away at the lead but still trailed 22-17 late in the set when a 5-0 run knotted the game at 22-22. Long and Star both had a block and a kill and McCarthy finished with another ace to end the streak. The Majors scored three of the next four points to take a 2-1 match lead, though, and was set up to clinch in the fourth. Both teams made early runs in the fourth, but the biggest blow came when the Majors scored five unanswered to break an 11-11 tie. Trinity eventually trimmed the lead to one at 20-19, then Pope had two kills in three straight points to get the score to 24-23, but Millsaps stopped the rally just short and took the win.
The Rundown: Southwestern
Southwestern opened the match on fire, scoring five of the first six points and leading by as many as five points early in the set. Trinity got as close as two points but could never get back to even as the Pirates were able to hold off the home team for the 1-0 lead. Southwestern also had the early advantage in the second set, but this time the Tigers were able to complete the comeback to take the lead. McWilliams had a block and a kill during the 6-1 run that put Trinity in front 12-10. Southwestern regained the lead for a brief moment, but four straight Tiger points put them back in control at 17-14. Payton had a pair of kills, while Long had an ace, and Pope started the run with a kill of her own. Southwestern kept pace in the next few points and then McWilliams and McCarthy took over for a 4-1 run that gave the Tigers a 23-19 lead. The duo combined for a block, then McCarthy had two kills surrounding a kill for McCarthy. Pope finished off the win with a kill and the match was tied 1-1.
Trinity carried that momentum into the third set, scoring the first six points to take an early lead. DeRivel had three aces in that stretch and Pope added a kill and a combo block with Starr. Shortly after, Starr had consecutive kills as part of a 3-0 spurt to make it a 9-2 lead. The Pirates answered by scoring eight of the next nine points to tie the game 10-10. Four different Tigers hammered down kills as part of a 4-1 run to answer and take a 14-11 lead. Southwestern pulled to within one again, but the Tigers scored nine of the next 11 points to get to set point at 24-16. Pope had two kills during that stretch and McCarthy finished the set with another kill to put the Tigers ahead 2-1 in the match. The fourth and final set saw Trinity score eight of the first 10 points – including a run of six consecutive scores. McCarthy had two blocks, Peyton had two kills, and Lanik finished the streak with an ace. Each time Southwestern rallied, the Tigers had an answer – with the most devastating being six consecutive scores to take an 18-10 lead. Long had three kills among the six points to fuel Trinity's run that effectively put the game out of reach. The Pirates never scored more than two in a row after that and the Tigers took the win, sealing the split for the day.
Up Next
Trinity will finish off the weekend by hosting Rhodes College (TN) tomorrow afternoon at 1:30 p.m.
