CANYON, Texas — Grit. The definition in the dictionary is firmness of character; indomitable spirit; pluck. The St. Mary's University Volleyball team showed plenty of all the above despite the results on the scoreboard during the second day of the Britkare Lady Buff Classic on the campus of West Texas A&M.
In the morning match, the Rattlers kept battling through the final point despite trailing in four of the five sets. StMU lost the five-set heartbreaker to East Central, 25-23, 21-25, 25-15, 23-25, 13-15. In the Rattlers tournament finale, they fell to top-ranked and defending national champion West Texas A&M 14-25, 22-25, 26-28.
Sophomore libero
Alyssa Koehl (New Braunfels, Texas) was named to the All-Tournament team after the conclusion of the Classic. Koehl averaged 3.63 digs per set over the four matches, tallying double figures in all four. She also had 51 service receptions with only three errors on the weekend.
The Gold & Blue are 2-2 on the young season and travel to the UTPB Classic in Odessa next week. The Rattlers begin the tournament on Thursday at 6 p.m. against Southwest (N.M.).
EAST CENTRAL RECAP
In the first set, the Rattlers were down 18-14 but outscored ECU 11-5 down the stretch. Senior
Josie Disponette (Wilmore, Ky.) notched four of her seven kills in the match during the come-from-behind run, while sophomore
Landri Withers (Stephenville, Texas) added two of her seven.
StMU never led in the second set, despite
Alicia Virthe (Orlando, Fla.) pounding down three kills and junior setter
Cali Nims (Corpus Christi, Texas) serving back-to-back aces. The Rattlers flipped the script and never trailed in the third set, winning 25-15. Sophomore
Dallasstar Johnson (San Antonio) posted two aces in the set, while the Rattlers combined for four blocks and had no unforced hitting errors.
Virthe exploded for seven kills in the fourth set, while Withers added seven digs as the team fought back from a 10-2 deficit to tie the score at 22-22 before the Tigers won three of the final four points for the 25-23 win.
There were five ties and two lead changes in the fifth and deciding set. Virthe recorded half of the team's kills with three and sophomore
Isabella Waggoner (Texas City, Texas) collected the team's eighth ace of the match. The teams were tied at 13-13 but the Panthers were once again able to score late for the win.
WEST TEXAS A&M RECAP
In the final two sets, the Rattlers made the Lady Buffs work for every single point, forcing 24 ties and 11 lead changes. Seven different players had at least one kill, including a match-high by Withers (7) and six each for senior
Brianna Morris-Worth (Yukon, Okla.) and freshman
Kelly Swyers (Austin, Texas). Swyers also led the charge in hitting percentage at .750, getting those six kills on eight swings with no errors.
Withers and Johnson each collected three blocks, while Koehl pitched in 13 digs and 11 receptions without and error.
In the second set, which StMU dropped 25-22, five Rattlers had two kills each, while Johnson led the way with three. The teams were tied at every point from 4-4 to 8-8 before WT was able to go on a small run and build a three-point lead at 19-16
The Rattlers staved off a pair of match points in the third set before losing 28-26. Withers paced the club with five kills, while Swyers chipped in four on five swings (.800).
West Texas A&M won the tournament with a perfect 4-0 record and saw Torrey Miller (MVP), Bryli Contreras and Ainsley Malis named to the All-Tournament squad. Lindsay Taylor and Emmy Webb from Davenport, Odalys Gonzalez from East Central and Cindy Garcia from Adams State rounded out the team.
