OLLU Volleyball Wins Conference Series Against Jarvis

HAWKINS, TEXAS (Oct. 5, 2024) – The Our Lady of the Lake University (OLLU) faced a tough Jarvis Christian University (JCU) Bulldogs on Friday taking the match to a full five sets for the win. Saturday's match was significantly more subdued as the Saints won 3-0. The two wins move the Saints to 11-7 overall and 4-1 in the Red River Athletic Conference (RRAC). JCU drops to 10-8 overall and 3-5 in conference.

History

The Saints are 25-0 against the Bulldogs. OLLU swept the Bulldogs in all but three matches.

Match one on Friday

The Saints played an energetic JCU team, just sneaking by the Bulldogs in the first set, 25-22. The Bulldogs tallied nine kills on 22 attacks in the opening game, while the Saints had 19 kills on 39 attacks.

The second set was more of a breeze for the Saints, winning 25-12. They added 13 kills, while limiting the Bulldogs to just four with a hitting percentage of -.065.

Both teams were evenly matched in the third set, each contributing 15 kills. The Bulldogs fought throughout to secure the third-set win 25-22.

The fourth set was a similar story as the third with the Saints getting 14 kills and Jarvis tallying 11. The Bulldogs were relentless and won 25-23 forcing a tie-breaker set five.

The Saints and Bulldogs kept going back and fourth, but OLLU was able to come out ahead to win 15-12 to secure the match, 3-2.

Camila Ramirez led the offense with 20 kills on just eight errors in 50 total attacks. She also added seven digs and a block. Mia Francis tallied 18 kills on two errors in 31 total attacks, while Anais Velasquez recorded 11 kills. Tina Trevino finished with 27 digs. Lauren Reynard added four service aces.

Head Coach Scott Mattera commented, "This match was certainly a test of our mental game - there were so many opportunities to give in to the myriad of distractions that environment provided and it almost got the best of us. Some great play from our outsides came through and preserved the win. Cami with 20 kills and Francis with 18 and only 2 errors was enormous. Lauren with 45 assists while running 6-2 (2 setter offense) is a crazy high number!"

Match two on Saturday

The Saints started the second match with three straight points, but the feisty Bulldogs came back to tie at 3-3. The teams tied again at five, seven, eight, nine and 10 before Mia Francis started the four-point rally. She added a kill and served to two attack errors from Jarvis. Two consecutive kills from Camila Ramirez gave the Saints the 16-14 lead. The momentum stayed with the Saints through the rest of the set and Victoria Urbanczyk scored the final point on a kill to win 25-20.

The Saints continued to dominate in the second game. Lauren Reynard's serve scored four points to begin. OLLU Went up 12-4 after kills from Anais Velasquez. The Bulldogs finally got to double digits after a Saints error moved the game to 16-10. Carly Dossett's serve at 23-17 allowed Mia Francis to get a kill, and Dossett closed the game with an ace to win 25-17.

The Bulldogs put up a lot of energy to begin the third set as they went up 5-0. The Saints trailed until they tied the score at nine. From that point on, the Saints held the lead to win 25-18.

Reynard tallied 29 assists, while Tina Trevino recorded 25 digs. Camila Ramirez led on offense with 14 kills for a hitting percentage of .370. Victoria Urbanczyk added 12 kills on 27 total attacks. Mia Francis secure three service aces, and Anais Velasquez added three blocks.

Friday night: This match was certainly a test of our mental game - there were so many opportunities to give in to the myriad of distractions that environment provided and it almost got the best of us. Some great play from our outsides came through and preserved the win. Cami with 20 kills and Francis with 18 and only 2 errors was enormous. Lauren with 45 assists while running 6-2 (2 setter offense) is a crazy high number!

Mattera said, "Saturday was a smoother match with Cami leading the way again with 14 kills on .370 hitting. Ani mixed power and smarts for eight kills and an eye popping .700 hitting percentage in only her second match on the right side."

What's next

The Saints return home to host Louisiana Christian University on Oct. 11 and 12.