Leopards Sweep Past NYU In Home Opener
Middle blocker Crista Jones
After six contests away from home, the University of La Verne volleyball finally returned to the friendly comfines of Frantz Athletic Court. The Leopards didn't disappoint the home folks in delivering a 25-19, 25-12, 25-14 triumph over visiting New York University Friday night.
La Verne dominated the contest both offensively and defensively, hitting .326 on the night while limiting the Violets to a hitting clip of .117. Moreover, the Leopards went the entire match without a service reception error and compiled 10 total team blocks compared to none for the visitors.
The Leos pulled away from NYU in the first set, seizing control after spurts of 5-0 and 4-0 in the latter stages to grab a 25-19. From there, La Verne coasted by hitting .500 in the second frame. La Verne led 20-7 en route to a 25-12 set win to go up 2-0. It was more of the same in the final set as the Leos held the Violets to a .000 hitting percentage.
Brianna Gonzales and Crista Jones combined for 19 kills. Jones tallied 9 kills on her way to a .643 percentage while also collecting 4.5 blocks. Gonzales finished with a team-high 10 kills in hitting .421. Rebecca Villanueva and Anna Calmer chipped in with 8 and 6 kills, respectively.
"I was impressed with how we played offensively and each of our setters distributed the ball effectively," said La Verne head coach Don Flora. "Our team looks forward to beginning conference play in earnest, and the league is definitely deeper than it's ever been."
La Verne resumes SCIAC action with a clash against #20 Cal Lutheran on Tuesday in Thousand Oaks. Start time is 7:30 pm.
