FULLERTON, Calif. – The No. 9-ranked Corban University volleyball team opened the 2017 campaign at the Hope International Summer Slam Tournament on Wednesday with a straight-set win over The Master's University (25-17, 25-20, 25-23), but then stumbled in the evening to No. 14-ranked Montana Tech in a tough five-set match (22-25, 25-16, 21-25, 25-16, 15-13).
"It was such a good test for us today," said Corban head coach Kim McLain. "The tough competition exposes our weaknesses so we know what to improve on."
In Wednesday's opener, Corban was firing on all cylinders offensively, hitting for a .385 clip for the match while peaking at .414 in set number two. Defensively in the win over The Master's, Corban held the Mustangs to just a .208 hitting percentage.
Individually, Adriana Aguayo led the way for the Navy and Gold, swinging for a .560 attack percentage with 15 kills and just one error. In addition, Amber Parker chipped in nine kills on a .304 attack percentage, while Demi Winters added seven kills for the Warriors.
Madison McLain dished out a team-best 22 assists, while rookie Cierra Leopoldino contributed 14 assists in the victory. Defensively, Haley Wells notched a team-high 14 digs.
In the nightcap, the Warriors claimed the set-one victory by three points, pulling ahead at the end of the set with some timely hitting. The second stanza was all Montana Tech, however, as the Warriors dropped the set by nine points.
After bouncing back to win the third set in similar fashion to the first, the fourth stanza looked much like the second, with Montana Tech claiming the 25-16 victory once again.
In the fifth and final set, Corban dug itself in a deep hole, falling behind early, 12-4. The Warriors rallied however, staving off multiple match points to bring the score eventually to 14-13, but a final kill from Montana Tech resulted in the five-set defeat for Corban. It marks the second straight year the Warriors lost to Montana Tech in five sets, with the fifth set being via a 15-13 score both years.
The Warriors hit for just a .173 mark on the night, swinging for a 0.000 mark in set four and just a 0.053 percentage in set five.
Corban (1-1) returns to the hardwood tomorrow with a pair of matches against two nationally-ranked opponents. First serve against No. 7 Westmont College (Calif.) is slated for 12 p.m., while Corban will then take on No. 16-ranked Cornerstone University (Mich.) at 4 p.m.
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