Lady Saints Dominate in Blue Dragon Classic

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Amberley Taylor, Co-Editor

The Seward County Lady Saints volleyball team dominated in the Blue Dragon Classic over the weekend, defeating all four of their opponents, breaking offensive records and upsetting a no.2 ranked team.

To start off the weekend, Seward went up against no. 8 ranked Jefferson College. The Lady Saints trailed at the beginning of the first set, but quickly gained the lead and continued trading points with Jefferson before winning 25-22.

In the second set, SCCC took an early lead and kept it, winning 25-16. In the final set, the two teams battled as Jefferson tried to make a comeback. Jefferson and Seward were tied at 11 before SCCC went on a run, taking the match in three sets 25-17.

In the second match of the weekend, The Lady Saints played no. 14 ranked Mineral Area College. The momentum from the first game carried over to the second, as Seward took an early lead and never looked back, winning 25-16. The second match was back and forth between the two teams.

The Cardinals continued to fight, but after back-to-back Lady Saint kills, they were defeated 25-17. The third set was the closest of the three with the Cardinals and Lady Saints tied at 23 points. Record breaking plays by Seward allowed them to win the final match 25-23.

The team walked away with the third most kills in a three-set match, finishing with 50 kills. Four Lady Saints finished with double digit kills, while freshman setter, Laura De Pra broke a record of 50 assists, the highest number of assists in a three set match.

During the second day of the tournament, Seward used defense to defeat yet another two opponents, in four sets each.

The first game of the day was against the no. 2 ranked Iowa Western Community College. The match was a battle between the two teams, and Seward didn’t take their first lead of the game until halfway through (15-14). After gaining the lead, SCCC kept fighting and took the first set 25-21. Both teams continued trading points in the second set, but Iowa Western outscored Seward  24-26.

In the third set, the Lady Saints were able to pull away with the lead, and defend it before winning 25-19 to take a 2-1 advantage over a higher ranked team. In the fourth and final set, both teams struggled with errors, giving each other ‘free points.’ The set was tied at 16 before the Seward went on a run and upset Iowa Western 25-19, 3-1.

The final game of the weekend was a struggle for the Lady Saints. In the first set, the Lady Saints had no problem keeping their momentum, beating Missouri State University-West Plains 25-15. In the second set, Seward struggled to even pass the ball. MSU quickly gained the lead and ran away with it, only allowing 8 Lady Saint points before beating them 25-8.

The third set was better for SCCC, but MSU continued to keep their momentum up and the two teams traded points. Seward gained the lead late in the set before defeating the Grizzlies, 25-21, taking a 2-1 advantage going into the fourth set. The Grizzlies began the final set with the lead, but SCCC regained their momentum. The two teams traded points back and forth before the Lady Saints defeated MSU 25-21, 3-1.

The Lady Saints will look to continue their 15-game winning streak on Monday, Sept. 24 against Colby Community College in the Greenhouse, beginning at 6:30 p.m.