WINFIELD, Kan. – On Friday night in Winfield, the Southwestern College volleyball team played host to the Randall University Saints, playing their first non-conference tilt in over a month. It was a strong night for the Builders, as though they dropped one set, they dominated the remaining three stanzas. They won the match by a final of three sets to one against the visitors.

Southwestern absolutely controlled the opening set, maintaining a 14-2 kill differential over the Saints. The number of attacks for each side was not much different, as Southwestern swung 32 times in comparison to Randall's 31 tries. The Builders attacked at .281 for the frame, while forcing the Saints to hit at just -.161 in the opening set. Needless to say, the set was not competitive, as the Moundbuilders took a 25-8 victory into the second set.

The result of the first set may have played into the way that set number two unfolded, as the Builders were riding high after a dominant display in the first frame. Unfortunately, the second stanza did not follow suit, as SC allowed Randall to have a much more effective stanza offensively. The Saints converted on 14 of their 53 swings in the set, matching Southwestern's 14 putaways on 58 tries. In a tightly fought set, the Moundbuilders got as close as a 23-23 tie, but dropped the final two points to fall 25-23. The score was knotted up at 1-1 after two.

It was back to efficient offense again for the Moundbuilders in the third frame, as 12 kills on 41 swings put the Builders at .220 for the set. Meanwhile, Randall had just nine kills and also committed six errors as attackers in the stanza, completing the set with just a .071 attacking clip. Southwestern came out of the set with just three attacking miscues, which helped lead them to the 25-15 win in the third period of play, threatening to win in four with a 2-1 advantage.

An outstanding final set from the Moundbuilders, and a dreadful one from Randal, would give SC their ninth win of the campaign. In the set, Southwestern had an unreal .323 attacking clip, while having a 13-3 kill/error ratio. They swung just 31 times in the frame, boasting upper level efficiency in the process. It was a 25-11 trouncing of the Saints in the match's final stanza.

Brianna Ede had the best swinging numbers for SC on this night, tallying 13 kills on 26 attempts, while only committing a single error in the match. Additionally, KaSandra Lyons had her best match of the season with 12 finishes on 26 tries. She only picked up two attacking errors on her stat line, combining with Ede for 25 kills and just three miscues. Hannah Weber (9), Jayda Brittenum (8), Daci Stover (6) and Anna Bradley (5) rounded out the list of Builders to contribute a kill to the stat sheet.

A 28-assist performance from Sierra Norlin headlined the Moundbuilder setting numbers, as Maela Stevens contributed 15 assists to the line score, as well. Even Sophia Wicker picked up five assists for SC in this one.

Wicker and Norlin tied for the team lead in digs with 19, while deferring a portion of the defensive duties to Weber (17), Kinley Williams (12) and Stevens (10). Weber and Ede each had four block assists in the match, as the team improved mightily in that category with 11 total blocks on the evening.

The Builders (9-11, 4-4 KCAC) will now turn around and drive south tomorrow to Alva, Okla. for the Northwestern Oklahoma State University Triangular, where they will face both Southeastern Oklahoma State University and Northwestern Oklahoma State University at 3 p.m. and 5 p.m., respectively. Following those two non-conference tilts, SC will be returning to Kansas Collegiate Athletic Conference (KCAC) play against McPherson College on Tuesday, October 25 at 7 p.m. in McPherson, Kan.

--buildersports.com--