MACON, Ga. -- The Nicholls State University women's volleyball program (2-0, 0-0 Southland) kicked off the 2019 campaign Friday with back-to-back competitive matchups at the Mercer Bears Classic, initially powering past host Mercer (0-1, 0-0 SoCon) by a 3-1 margin in the tournament opener before pulling off a comeback victory over Campbell (0-2, 0-0 Big South) later in the afternoon, rallying from down two sets for a 3-2 win. First-year head coach
Kallie Noble notched the initial two victories of her young career, leading the Red & Gray to a 2-0 record for the first time since the 2015 campaign.
GAME ONE vs. MERCER (W 3-1)
-- Despite dropping the opening set by a 17-25 mark, the Colonels rallied to three consecutive victories across the second (25-23), third (25-19) and fourth (25-23) sets to secure the victory.
-- Freshman OH
Jackie Alanis proved deadly to the Bears, as she posted a team second-best in kills (14) with a squad-high four service aces.
-- Meanwhile, sophomore RS
Katie Jones pounded Mercer from the right side, leading the Red & Gray in kills (16) while picking up two assisted blocks.
-- Fellow sophomore MB
Aaliyah Burras handled all six of the Colonels' blocks for the game, notching three solo and three assisted.
-- Defensively, senior DS
Emily Venable led the way behind 19 digs.
"I think we started off the first set with some jitters," Noble said. "We just had to work through some serve-receive rotations, but we managed to settle in near the end of that initial set and that momentum carried us through the second, third and fourth. Individually, I thought
Katie Jones did a phenomenal job swinging from the right side pin, and our freshman outside hitter
Jackie Alanis also put in a great performance. Moving forward, we just need to work on being more disciplined defensively, not to mention more aggressive on the serve with less mental errors. We handled all of our set points very well, and I look forward to seeing more of that killer instinct as we move deeper into the schedule."
GAME TWO vs. CAMPBELL (W 3-2)
-- After falling in the opening two sets by just a combined seven points (22-25, 20-25), Nicholls regrouped for a three-set comeback effort, outpacing Campbell in the third (25-23), fourth (27-25) and fifth (15-12) sets to clinch an eventual 3-2 win.
-- Once again, Alanis showcased considerable effort on the outside, drilling a team-high 17 kills with one service ace on the match.
-- Burras rekindled her offensive spirit as well, picking up 15 kills to go along with a pair of blocks.
-- Jones and fellow sophomore
Emily Gauthreaux also played a major role in offensive system, posting 10 kills each.
-- A surprise came from junior S
Meghan Wozniak, who led the squad in blocks for the game with a career-best five (more than her previous total combined).
"It was definitely a grit game," Noble continued. "As coaches, we always believe in them, but in this case, they believed in themselves and pulled out the victory. It's so exciting to see their emotions explode after those sorts of wins, especially since we have this great talent pool, but we just needed to learn how to win. Earning those two wins is a great start to the season, and the whole team is sky-high right now. When you win in five, that has nothing to do with us coaches, that's about them buying into this team, and they did that today against Campbell."
UP NEXT
With the first day's pair of matchups completed, the Colonels set their sights on remaining undefeated against the final opponent of the Mercer Bears Classic: Georgia Southern, first serve set for 10 a.m. on Saturday, Aug. 31. After wrapping the Mercer Bears Classic, the Red & Gray return to south Louisiana for the program's first Thibodaux-based tournament since 2011, hosting the Colonels Classic on Sept. 6 & Sept. 7 against Alcorn State.
STAY SOCIAL
For more information on Colonels Volleyball, follow the team on Twitter (
@Nicholls_VB), Instagram (
@nicholls_vb) and like their Facebook page (
Nicholls Volleyball).
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-- #GeauxColonels --
