Winston-Salem, N.C.- Blue Mountain Christian Volleyball wrapped up the Carolina Classic on Saturday, splitting a pair of matches to finish its opening weekend with a 2-1 record.
The Volley Toppers opened the day with a five-set battle against Bryan College, falling 3-2 before responding with a dominant 3-0 sweep over host Carolina University to close out the tournament.
Bryan 3, Blue Mountain Christian 2
BMCU started Saturday on a strong note, taking the opening set against Bryan 25-22.
The Lions answered in the second set with a 25-20 victory to even the match before taking control with a 25-22 win in the third.
Facing a 2-1 deficit, the Volley Toppers responded in the fourth. BMCU took the set 25-19 to force a decisive fifth set.
The two sides battled in the final frame, but Bryan came away with a 15-12 victory to hand BMCU its first loss of the season.
Marissa Gerleman led the Volley Toppers offensively with 17 kills while hitting .333. Gerleman also made her presence felt at the net with four solo blocks and a block assist.
Salice Speed turned in an all-around performance with 15 kills and 17 digs for a double-double.
Olivia Lewis added seven kills while hitting .333, while
Mattie Hopper also finished with seven kills.
Olivia Domino directed the BMCU offense with 32 assists, while
Abbi Williams anchored the back row with a team-high 28 digs.
The Volley Toppers finished the five-set match with 55 kills, 50 assists and 78 digs.
Blue Mountain Christian 3, Carolina 0
BMCU did not allow the morning loss to linger, responding with a straight-set victory over Carolina University to close out the weekend.
The Volley Toppers set the tone with a convincing 25-15 victory in the opening set before taking the second 25-18. BMCU finished off the sweep with another 25-18 victory in the third.
Valeria Velez led a balanced BMCU attack with nine kills while hitting .233. Gerleman continued her strong day with eight kills and a .286 hitting percentage.
Hopper was efficient at the net, finishing with six kills on 13 attempts without committing an attack error for a .462 hitting percentage. Speed added six kills and made an impact from the service line with five aces.
Domino dished out 28 assists to go along with seven digs, while Williams once again led the defensive effort with 22 digs. Speed added 13 digs and Velez finished with 11.
BMCU hit .237 as a team in the victory and recorded 35 kills, 34 assists and 65 digs.
The Volley Toppers finished Saturday with several strong individual performances across the two matches. Gerleman totaled 25 kills, while Speed recorded 21 kills and 30 digs. Williams collected 50 digs on the day, and Domino totaled 60 assists.
BMCU leaves Winston-Salem with a 2-1 record after closing the Carolina Classic with a sweep.
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