Volleyball opened up conference play against Texas Lutheran University and Southwestern University. Although both matches ended in a loss, St. Thomas showed grit with 33 total ties on the day.
Texas Lutheran:
The first match of the day saw the UST Celts falling to the TLU Bulldogs 3-1. St. Thomas was competitive with Texas Lutheran, tying with them 15 times across four sets.
In the first set, the Celts kept a slight two-point lead over the bulldogs early, this was until the Bulldogs tied it at 10-10. From there, TLU went on an 8-2 run to go up 18-12. UST would respond with a 5-0 run of their own and get within striking distance of 18-17. However, steady play from TLU would ultimately win them the set 25-22. In set two both the Celts and Bulldogs went point for point early with four ties total. Yet the Bulldog defense tightened after a 14-14 tie. This led to an 11-4 TLU run to close out the set 25-18. In the third set, the Celts would dominate the Bulldogs, forcing them to play behind from the opening serve. Capped by a kill from Alyssa Ajlouny, St. Thomas won by a commanding score of 25-14. In the fourth and final set, St. Thomas would find themselves playing from behind after a 12-3 TLU run midway through the set. Facing defeat, the Celts would fight back with a 12-7 run of their own, but it would be too late as TLU won the set 25-20 and the match 3-1.
Southwestern:
After a tough first match, the Celts fought hard to win their second game of the day but ultimately fell to Southwestern in four sets 3-1.
In the opening set, St. Thomas struggled to get any offense going as Southwestern found themselves ahead from the opening whistle. Yet a commanding 20-13 lead wasn't enough to put away the Celts as an 8-1 run quickly tied the score at 21 apiece. However, Southwestern was able to put together late quality rallies to take set one 25-23. In set two, both teams leveled with each other and forced six ties and 12 lead changes. It was ultimately the Celts who came up on top, as serving proved to be the difference with four service aces to win 25-21. With both teams tied, set three gave way for Southwestern as they took an 8-1 lead and didn't look back. St. Thomas would respond with a timely 4-2 run midway through to make the score 16-11, but it wasn't enough as the Pirates took set three 25-17. In the final set, a 5-0 run would put the Celts in a position to force a fifth, however, the Pirates would battle from behind. Southwestern would ultimately win the final set 25-17 and the match 3-1.
Offensively, Trinity Atkins led the Celts on the day with 16 kills, while Alaina Lanik sent 21 assists across the board. Defensively, Ally Peters had 40 digs while Paige Havel notched seven total blocks.
After the SCAC opening weekend, St. Thomas Volleyball is now 0-2 in conference play. Up next, they look to bounce back as they face TLU for the final time on Tuesday on the road in Seguin.
