Seward Extends KJCCC Winning Streak to 18 with Win at Pratt
Brock Kappelmann - October 5, 2017 12:35 pm
PRATT, Kan. – The No. 5 Lady Saints volleyball team resumed conference play on Wednesday, traveling to Pratt to take on the Beavers. Seward ran away with the match, sweeping Pratt by scores of 25-6, 25-12, 25-14. The win stretched the Lady Saints conference winning streak to 18 games.
Seward (23-1, 8-0) came out in dominating fashion, never trailing the entire match. In the first set, The Beavers kept it close early on, with a tied 3-3 set. The Lady Saints quickly put the set out of reach. The set consisted of three runs by Seward, a 6-0 run, 12-0 run, and a 4-0 run to end the set. Brianna Bradford ended the set with a kill, 25-6. Of the Beavers six points, only one came from a kill.
The Lady Saints jumped out to another early lead in set two, going up 7-3 through the first ten points. Giovanna Tapigliani accounted for three kills during that span. Seward went on a 14-5 run through the middle of the set to give them a 21-8 advantage. Mariana Nascimento and Giovanna Kuntze both accounted for three kills during the run. The teams traded the remaining points in the set, until the Lady Saints came out on top, 25-12.
Looking to complete their sixth sweep of a Jayhawk opponent, the Lady Saints wasted no time, going up 9-2 before the Beavers called a timeout. The lead stayed at seven for most of the match, until Esmadar Tavares came away with a kill and started a 4-0 run, giving the Lady Saints a 10-point advantage by a score of 23-13. The Lady Saints scored two of the remaining three points. The set and match ended with a Beaver attacking error, giving the Lady Saints a 25-14 set three win and the sweep.
The Lady Saints were extremely efficient in the match, accounting for only twelve errors the entire match, finishing with a .391 hitting percentage. Seward tied their three-set high with 43 assists. Despite only playing two set, Kuntze came away with 27 assists. Her replacement, Tavares, finished with 10 assists in her one set played.
Seward came up just shy of their three-set high in kills, finishing with 48 on the match. Mariana Nascimento led the Lady Saints with 12 kills, while Tapigliani came away with 11. Kuntze (.600) and Nascimento (.625) both finished made their attacks count, finishing with a .600 hitting percentage.
For the first match all season, the Lady Saints finished with zero blocks. However, they still finished with a respectable 51 digs. Nathiellen Machado (12) and Tapigliani (12) tied for the Lady Saints lead in digs. The eleven kills and twelve digs for Tapigliani marked her eight double-double of the season.
The Lady Saints will be back in action at 2 p.m. on Saturday, when they travel to Garden City to take on the Broncbusters at the new Conestoga Arena.
[cid:
Ian Applegate
