Tag: Nationals

Volleyball battled in opening round of nationals

The OLLU volleyball team fought hard against Concordia University, Nebraska (CUNE), losing two sets by just three points and one set by six to end their 2024 season in the Opening Round of the 45th Annual NAIA Volleyball National Championship. CUNE, which is ranked No. 2 in the NAIA, will move on to Pool Play with a 25-3 record, while the Saints finish the season with a 23-9 record.

Head Coach Scott Mattera commented, “Our ladies represented OLLU in a way that should make every member of the Saints community proud. They put up such a fight and handled themselves with such class. We were in every set with chances to win, but Concordia is No. 2 for a reason, and we made just a few more plays than we did. It was a fun, intense battle all the way through.

“Ani played great again, leading us in kills, and Lauren had a really nice match mixing things around and stealing points with timely dumps.”

Match recap
The Saints started each set with the lead, but CUNE pushed through to lead. However, the Saints remained within a short distance from the Bulldogs throughout the match. In the first set, the Saints tied six times before letting it slip away at 16-16. The Bulldogs won 25-22.

In the second period, the Saints led 3-2, and Julissa Casas’ serve scored five points to give them the lead 9-6. The teams tied four times, but the Bulldogs battled to win 25-19.

The Saints went up 5-2 to begin the third set, and they led until the Bulldogs tied at nine. A kill from Anais Velasquez to tie the game at 22-22 gave the Saints some hope, but CUNE scored three straight points to win the set 25-22 and the match 3-0.

Match stats
Lauren Reynard led the Saints in assists with 20, while Tina Trevino and Julissa Casas each added 10 digs. Velasquez contributed 10 kills on 22 total attacks for a .318 hitting percentage. Nicole Bir tallied two blocks, and Carly Dossett totaled three service aces.

CUNE had three players with double-digit kills. Ashley Keck had 15, while Kya Scott and Ella Waters each had 10. Rebecca Gebhardt added 16 digs, and Keck had 12. Savannah Shelburne recorded 21 assists, and Lily Psencik had 18.

OLLU’s stats included 38 kills and 14 errors on 113 total attacks for a hitting percentage of .212. The Saints scored 37 assists, 45 digs, and six service aces.

CUNE’s stats included 51 kills and 12 errors on 111 total attacks for a hitting percentage of .351. The Bulldogs added 47 assists, 55 digs, and four blocks.

Conclusion
The Saints finish with the fourth-best record in program history at 23-9. Other records include:

  • Most assists (1,453)
  • Most digs (1,995)
  • Most solo blocks (122)
  • Second most kills in a season (1,519)
  • Third most total blocks (195)
  • Third most kills in a match (71)
  • Tied for most assists in a match (68)
  • Tina Trevino tied for most digs in a match (39)
  • Tina Trevino – most career digs (2,086)
  • Tina Trevino – third most career matches played (118)
  • Tina Trevino – third most career sets played (413)
  • Camila Ramirez – most career kills (1,218)
  • Camila Ramirez – fourth most career sets played (406)
  • Lauren Reynard – second in career assists (2,714)
  • Anais Velasquez – second most blocks in a season (30)

Cross-Country teams competed at nationals in Missouri

The men’s and women’s cross-country teams competed at the NAIA Cross Country National Championship in Columbia, Missouri, last week.

The men’s team finished in 34th place in the 8000m. The College of Idaho won the team national title with 87 points. Milligan University was the team runner-up with 96 points.

Head Coach Brett Charlton commented, “The men’s team had a solid outing. Isai Moran ran very well. To be the top runner on a national qualifying team as a freshman is very impressive. He’s someone we feel we can build around in the future.”

Isai Moran was the Saints’ top finisher with a time of 25:38.7. He was followed by Sabastian Moreno with a time of 26:19.7, Joseph Gonzalez with a time of 26:33.5, JoseCarlos Hernandez with a time of 26:42.2, Jose Saucedo with a time of 26:52.3, Kruz Malesich with a time of 27:33.5 and Tony Favella with a time of 27:58.4.

The women’s team finished in 34th place in the 6000m. The Master’s University emerged as the team champion by one point over Taylor University. 

Coach Charlton commented, “The women’s team competed hard today. Mia Curiel ran a lifetime best in the 6K at 23:43. All the way around the board, the ladies left it on the course. It was an extremely fast field this season which is really good for NAIA cross-country.”

Mia Curiel was the Saints’ top finisher with a time of 23:43.2. She was followed by Victoria Bartlett, who had a time of 24:48.0. Liliana Hernandez was next with a time of 24:54.9. Leilani Leza marked a time of 24:55.5, followed by Valeria Peña at 26:03.2 and Claudia Helena Lopez at 26:59.0.

Overall, the 2024 NAIA cross country national championship was a highly competitive and exciting event that showcased the talent and dedication of the participating student-athletes.