GEORGETOWN, Texas — Southwestern volleyball and the Concordia Tornados traded booming shots in a thrilling back-and-forth fourth set, with the Pirates coming through and taking the match in five (23-25, 25-12, 18-25, 28-26, 15-10).
"What a way to kick off a new season with a high-quality win versus a quality defensive team in Concordia," head volleyball coach Don Flora says.
Freshman Christina Kuras, younger sister of Jessica Kuras, showed flashes of brilliance in her collegiate debut. The outside hitter from Pheonix, Ariz., showcased her athleticism and big arm, putting down 11 kills on a .258 clip. She also contributed three block assists to finish with 12.5 points.
Middle blocker Riley Brantley and right side Lauren Crabtree were their typical all-conference selves in the season opener, picking up where they left off. Brantley was efficient with 10 kills on a .261 attack percentage and dominated at the net, producing four block assists and a solo block. Crabtree, no longer having to fill in at setter, poured her energy into big swings, leading the team with 12 kills.
The Pirates showcased power but struggled at times with precision, committing more errors (nine) than kills (seven) in the first set and eight errors to 11 kills in the third set, dropping both.
Concordia's Kylexus Block was a problem for Southwestern all weekend, recording match-highs with 20 kills and 25 digs. Sarah Ghormley also finished with double-digit kills for the Tornados with 15 to go with 17 digs.
"This team learned a lot about themselves and how to compete when your own rhythm is not as clean as you would like," Flora says. "We give credit to Concordia for keeping the pressure on us tonight."
Southwestern and Concordia went toe-to-toe in the fourth set with 12 ties and four lead changes. Brantley steadied the Pirates with five kills on nine attacks with no errors in the set, and Andie Valenzuela and Christina Kuras teaming up on back-to-back blocks to close out the set at 28-26.
"I think our serve receive stuck together, and that helped us find some good swings late in the fourth set and to start the fifth," Flora explains.
The Pirates rode the momentum to a 10-3 lead in the fifth set with four kills from Crabtree and held on to take the victory.
Southwestern finished with 51 kills on a .122 attack percentage with 50 assists and 12 service aces, led by libero Ali Grona, who finished with six and a team-high 24 digs. Katelyn Whitehead led the team with 25 assists and freshman Claire Romo had 20, giving the Pirates two quality setters to direct the attack.
After winning their season opener at home, Southwestern will take a trip to Tacoma, Wash. this weekend for matches against Pacific Lutheran, Whitman, and Puget Sound at the Puget Sound Premier.
