LADIES SPLIT PAIR OF MATCHES ON FIRST DAY OF HIGHLANDER INVITATIONAL
Batesville, Ark. – The Centenary Ladies volleyball team opened its 2021 regular season by splitting a pair of non-conference matches in the Highlander Invitational hosted by Lyon College, defeating Jarvis Christian 3-2 and falling 3-0 to the host Scots at Becknell Gymnasium.
The Ladies (2-2) are taking a unique approach to the start of their season this weekend as the roster is split evenly, with half of the team playing in the Highlander Invitational and half participating in the Millsaps/Belhaven Invitational in Jackson, Miss.
Centenary edged Jarvis Christian in the opening match of the day before falling to Lyon in the afternoon match. The Ladies will face College of the Ozarks (10:30 a.m.) and Mid-America Christian College (6 p.m.) in their final two matches of the event on Saturday.
In the morning match versus Jarvis Christian, the Ladies took set one by a score of 25-18 and then the Bulldogs evened the match by winning set two, 25-20. The Maroon and White came back with a 25-17 win in set three before Jarvis took set four, 24-20. The Ladies clinched the match with a 15-9 win in the fifth and final set.
Sophomore MB/OH Robin Lemelle (Liberty, Texas) and junior DS Mariah Martinez (San Antonio, Texas) each recorded 18 digs in the match versus Jarvis and combined for seven kills, six by Lemelle. The 18 digs are a single-match career high for both Lemelle and Martinez. Martinez posted her eighth career match with double-digit digs.
Senior, OH Lauren Kelley Fort Worth, Texas) had a great match with 15 kills and 11 digs. Sophomore DS/L Tori Ligman (Bossier City, La.) had an impressive 16 digs, the fourth time she has reached double figures in a match in her young career. The former Airline High product burst on the scene last season with 22 digs in her first collegiate match versus St. Thomas. Sophomore S Regan Griffin (Arlington, Texas) added seven digs and one kill. Fellow sophomore MB Tori Reich (Shreveport) had 11 kills and freshman MB/OH McKayla Merrow (Shreveport) posted 11 kills and a dig in her collegiate debut.
In the afternoon match versus Lyon, the Ladies dropped the first set by a score of 25-12, fell in a tight set two (25-22) and then the Scots closed out the match in set three, 25-17. Martinez recorded 17 assists and added eight digs in the match while Kelley had 10 digs and 10 kills. Lemelle had another solid match with 14 digs and four kills.
Merrow and Griffin combined for four kills, three digs, and six assists and a pair of freshmen, DS Allana Scott-Daniels (Spring, Texas) and Alex McQuat (Lafayette, La.) saw their first action of the season as Scott-Daniels tallied eight digs and McQuat added a dig and four kills.
CENTENARY EARNS SPLIT ON DAY ONE OF MILLSAPS/BELHAVEN INVITATIONAL
Jackson, Miss. – The Centenary Ladies volleyball team opened its 2021 regular season by splitting a pair of non-conference matches in the Millsaps/Belhaven Invitational at the Hangar Dome on the Millsaps University campus, falling to LeTourneau 3-1 then ending the day with a 3-1 win over co-host Millsaps.
The Ladies (2-2) are taking a unique approach to the start of their season this weekend as the roster is split evenly, with half of the team playing in the Highlander Invitational in Batesville, Ark. hosted by Lyon College and half participating in the Millsaps/Belhaven Invitational.
In the opening match against LeTourneau, the Ladies claimed set one, 25-21 and then the YellowJackets evened the match with a 25-18 decision in the second set. LeTourneau then took sets three and four by scores of 25-20 and 25-22 to clinch the match.
Freshman RS Jaylin St. Martin (New Orleans, La.) led the Ladies with 12 kills and added six digs and a pair of blocks in her collegiate debut. Senior OH Alyssa Davis (Van Alstyne, Texas) recorded a team-high 17 digs and added nine kills. Sophomore DS/L Jaycie Proctor (Paris, Texas) had 13 digs and a pair of kills. A pair of freshmen, MB Elizabeth Canady (League City, Texas) and OH/DS Kiara Liedy (Sugar Land, Texas) made solid contributions in their debuts for the Ladies as Canady recorded eight kills, a dig, and a block and Liedy had six digs and a block. Centenary finished the match with 56 total digs, 47 total kills, and five blocks.
The Ladies took set one over Millsaps in their second match of the day by a score of 28-26 and then went up 2-0 after a 25-19 decision in set two. Millsaps took set three, 25-17, but the Ladies closed the match out with a 25-21 win in set four. Centenary will face co-host Belhaven at Noon on Saturday and then meets Mary Hardin-Baylor at 2 p.m. to wrap up play in the event. Both matched will be held at Charles R. Rugg Arena on the Belhaven campus.
See the official Highlander Invitational tournament page here complete with links for live stats and live video of each match: https://lyonscots.com/sports/2021/9/1/2021-lyon-college-volleyball-highlander-invitational.aspx
See the official Millsaps/Belhaven Invitational tournament page here complete with links for live stats and live video of each match: https://portal.stretchinternet.com/millsaps/
See the complete 2021 Ladies volleyball season schedule here: https://www.gocentenary.com/sports/wvball/2021-22/schedule
Admission is FREE to all Centenary home athletic contests but be advised of current COVID-19 protocols for fans. Updated COVID-19 information will be available in the coming days via www.GoCentenary.com. Live stats and live video stream are available for all Centenary home contests.
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