Georgetown, Texas - Pirate volleyball concluded Saturday with a 1-1 record gaining a win over Pomona-Pitzer 3-1 and falling to Claremont-Mudd-Scripps in a five-set battle. 

The Pirates were led offensively by Andie Valenzuela who tallied 14 kills in the match followed by Carly Berkman with 9. Defensively, Geneva Nedrow notched 30 digs in the contest with the freshman Lauren McIntyre adding nine to the stat column. Southwestern fell to Pomona in the second after a first-set win and then closed out their first game on Saturday in the final two sets.

In Saturday night's contest, Southwestern went back and forth for two sets with CMS before taking a third set win. However, it was the Athenas who showed up defensively in the final two sets, limiting the Pirates to just 16 overall points in the two frames.

Berkman and Valenzuela again led the Pirates on the attack with 13 and 10 kills respectively. McIntyre, Annika Flora, Nedrow and Stratton Sneed all collected double-digit digs on Saturday night, showing just the type of game the two teams played out on the floor. 

"Today was a true test of what the 2023 season can hold for these athletes.  We had a number of first opportunities in new roles and new positions, and having a quality win over Pomona Pitzer was a key step to our growth," explains Coach Flora.

"Playing another quality team and going toe to toe with CMS showed the competitive edge that we have within this elite group of women. We have learned a lot and now we can get back in the gym and grow and develop. Our defense and our middle offense really grew throughout each match this weekend, not to mention the setters kept listening to the hitters… so we have an opportunity to truly grow into a dynamic offensive team."

The Pirates will be in Georgetown for the first home game of the season against Concordia (TX) on Thursday, September 7th at 6:00 PM.