CALDWELL, Idaho. – The No. 7 Corban University Women's Volleyball team (3-1, 0-0) completed the College of Idaho Tournament with a pair of wins against the University of Montana Western (0-5, 0-0) and the University of Saint Katherine (2-2, 0-0), improving to 3-1 on the weekend as the return home to Salem, Oregon.
"Today was a great day to continue discovering who we are as a team, as well as working on our level of consistency throughout each match," Warriors' Head Coach Kim McLain confirmed.
"I look forward to getting back in the gym this week in order to work on some adjustments before we head back on the road next weekend," McLain concluded.
GAME 1
After dropping a five-set thriller to SAGU last night, the Warriors weren't prepared to start another match with a 0-1 set shortfall.
The first set against Montana Western proved that exact mentality, as falling behind 0-3 to begin the contest quickly turned into a 20-11 advantage thanks to a seven-point run by Corban. In that run, both senior outside hitter Avari Ridgway and freshman opposite hitter Makayla Roginski registered a pair of kills each, all four of those points coming via the assists of senior setter Jadyn Mullen.
Neither the Warriors nor Bulldogs were able to find momentum to begin the second set, as both teams held no more than a two-point lead at any point until the 13-11 mark in Corban's favor. The Warriors went on a 12-7 run following that mark, where Montana Western just couldn't find an answer for the power trio of Ridgway, Roginski, and sophomore outside hitter Rylee Troutman, who had four kills in the set.
With a sweep on the horizon for Corban, five different Warriors kickstarted an electric offensive showing in the third set, equating to a 9-3 Corban lead with thanks to outstanding teamwork around the court. Montana Western attempted a miniature comeback midway through the set, rattling off four straight points to pull a 13-17 deficit, but Corban was able to hold them at bay for the three-set sweep.
Troutman put together a nearly perfect offensive performance with 13 kills and just one attacking error, equating to a .429 attacking percentage. Ridgway provided another 10 kills for her third straight game in double-digits at the category. Roginski and outside hitters Ally Schmidt and Ainslie Ridgway all delivered five kills apiece to the end game offensive totals as well.
Senior libero Kealani Ontai led all players with 21 digs in the backcourt, while Mullen held a game-high 19 assists in her third straight start commanding the offense.
Defensive prowess is what proved to be the difference maker in the Warriors' dominating victory over Montana Western, as the Bulldogs managed a lowly .042 attacking percentage against a towering Corban frontline.
Three separate Bulldogs for the team lead in kills with five each, middle blockers Danyel Martin and Morgan Stenger, and outside hitter Jazi Smith. Libero Kelsey Goddard led Montana Western with 18 digs, and setter Kaylee Fritz earned a team-high 11 assists.
GAME 2
Looking to end the weekend with a pair of Saturday victories, the Warriors jumped out to a commanding 12-6 lead over the Firebirds, with Troutman and the Ridgway sisters leading the charge offensively with over half of their 12 points coming from one of those three Corban student-athletes. Saint Katherine was able to crawl back to within two points after trailing by six, but yet another Warrior run left the Firebirds in the dust to clinch the set 25-19.
Saint Katherine absolutely brought the intensity in set number two, as after falling back 2-6 to open the set, the Firebirds were able to stay within two points the remainder of the set, until they officially took the lead at 21-20.
After being forced into taking a timeout, the Warriors scored the three of the next four points to flip the script, and now require the Firebirds to talk their strategy over with the score at 23-22. Troutman scored a service ace to make it set point, and Corban prevailed 25-23 after an Avari Ridgway kill.
The Firebirds once again increased their pace of play for the third straight set, this time rebounding from an 8-13 deficit to find themselves in another similar situation as the second set, but this time with Saint Katherine on top 23-22 over Corban. The Warriors battled back and forth well over the 25-point mark, but the Firebirds were able to eke out a 29-27 set three win after multiple close plays at the out-of-bounds line in the back right corner of Saint Katherine's side of the court.
Determined not to drop another five-set match, the Warriors kicked the gameplay into another gear, absolutely sweeping past the Firebirds to open the fourth set 9-3 and forcing Saint Katherine' Head Coach Eryn Leja-Martin to call her first timeout of the set after just 12 points being played out.
Stopping the pace of play did little to the Warriors' stamina, as they proceeded to knock out another seven points to the Firebirds' four, and seeing the final timeout in the Saint Katherine' arsenal being called with Corban leading 16-7.
A determined Saint Katherine team tried as they might against the No. 7 Warriors, but another huge Corban run of 9-4 allowed the match point to be scored off a kill by Mullen, and sending the Warriors home 3-1 overall.
Very little changed in the offensive performers for Corban from game one this morning to the afternoon session, as Troutman tallied another 14 kills to make it 27 on the day, while Roginski led the Warriors with 15 kills and a .310 attacking percentage. Both Avari and Ainslee followed in part with six kills apiece, while sophomore middle blocker Allyson Reid chipped in an additional six kills with her game-high nine blocks.
Avari Ridgway solidified the backcourt in game two with a team-high 18 digs, with Ontai following right behind at 17 for the contest. Mullen set a new season-high in assists with 25, and freshman setter Abby Guindy provided the second group of starters with 11 assists.
Outside hitter Addison Metts led all players with 18 total kills, while providing five blocks and four digs defensively. Middle blocker Makenzie Nutting secured 12 kills for Saint Katherine, and libero Camille Harvey hauled in a game-high 30 digs.
The Warriors will depart from Caldwell with a 3-1 overall record, highlighted by the opening day sweep of No. 3 Bellevue University in what could potentially be just their first of many meetings in the 2022 season.
The Corban Women's Volleyball team will continue their non-conference schedule next Friday, when they travel to Hope International University for the HIU Summer Slam, taking on the host Royals at 10am PT, then continuing into the afternoon session with No. 8 Northwestern College (Iowa) at 4pm PT.
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