IRVING, Texas -- The LeTourneau volleyball team ended the regular season on a strong note with two non-conference wins on Saturday in Irving. The YellowJackets took down Austin College in four sets (25-19, 25-22, 23-25, 25-15) in the first match before rallying past Dallas in five sets (25-15, 16-25, 19-25, 25-15, 15-12) to close the day.
LeTourneau (13-13) has won six of its last eight matches and will enter the ASC Tournament on Thursday as the No. 4 seed.
Morgan Nix totaled 65 digs between the two matches and broke her own single-season program record for digs as she sits on 738 for the year. Nix continues to lead Division III in both digs per set and total digs for the season.
MATCH ONE: LeTourneau 3, Austin College 1
The YellowJackets played a complete match in taking down a solid Austin College squad in four sets to open Saturday.
Yari Ortiz had 17 kills and two blocks, while
Faith Keating had 12 kills and two blocks.
Kaci Monk added 11 kills with five blocks and
Reina Lawson had a double-double with 36 assists, 14 digs to go with four aces. Nix tallied 39 digs in the victory.
Nora Lockhart had six blocks and
Allison Smith tallied four with four kills.
LeTourneau had 50 kills in the match and out-blocked Austin College 10-5.
The YellowJackets used a 12-2 run to finish off the first set and rally for a 25-19 victory. Ortiz had four kills during the stretch and a Lawson ace capped the run. In the second set, LeTourneau opened up a 13-8 lead after a block from Lockhart and Monk. The YellowJackets broke a 22-22 tie with three straight points to take a 2-0 match lead.
After dropping the third set, LeTourneau responded in a big way by tallying 14 kills to cruise to a 25-15 match-clinching fourth set victory. The YellowJackets scored the first six points of the frame and never trailed.
Austin College (17-11) was led by 12 kills from Victoria Smith.
MATCH TWO: LeTourneau 3, Dallas 2
LeTourneau had to rally, but the YellowJackets were successful in completing a season sweep of Dallas with a five-set victory to conclude Saturday.
Ortiz was again the leader on the attack as she tallied 16 kills in the victory. She recorded 52 kills over three matches on the week for the YellowJackets.
Monk added 12 kills with five total blocks (one solo, four assisted) and Lawson had another double-double with her 38 assists and 16 digs. Smith notched eight kills with three blocks and three aces, while
Hannah Payan had seven kills and 14 digs. Nix added 29 digs and
Ty Shannon had 13 digs.
LeTourneau opened the contest with a 25-15 win in the first set, but Dallas answered by taking the next two for a 2-1 match lead.
In the fourth, the YellowJackets totaled 15 kills and pulled away early for a 25-15 victory.
The teams traded points midway through the fifth, but LeTourneau made the run that sealed the win. Three straight points, including a combination block from
Amya Orn and Monk, gave LeTourneau a 9-7 lead. A Payan ace followed by an Ortiz kill extended the lead to 13-8 and Smith's eighth kill of the match was the clincher.
Dallas (13-19) got 15 kills from Alexa Swaller.
UP NEXT
LeTourneau heads to Belton, Texas for the ASC Tournament on Thursday. The YellowJackets will take on No. 5 seed Hardin-Simmons in the quarterfinals and match time will be announced soon.
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