COLUMBIA, Ky. – The Lindsey Wilson volleyball team handled its business on Saturday afternoon to improve to 4-0 for the first time since 2020. The Blue Raiders shutdown a physical Loyola (La.) side before pulling away from Spartanburg Methodist (S.C.) to cap off a perfect opening weekend in the Roar and Raid Invitational.
Petra Fernandez Garcia led the home team in kills across both matches, finishing with 33 while hitting a solid 0.343. Garcia was also one of five Blue Raiders to record three or more service aces on the day as Lindsey Wilson outaced its opponents 24-9.
Defensively,
Momo Hampton averaged three digs per set on her way to a team-leading 24.
Match One: Lindsey Wilson 3, Loyola (La.) 1
A kill from Garcia followed by back-to-back attack errors by the Wolf Pack gave the Blue Raiders a 3-1 lead in the first set. Loyola straightened out to go ahead 4-3 but the hosts were quick to respond with a 6-2 run. An array of Wolf Pack miscues, both on hitting and serving, allowed Lindsey Wilson to increase its lead to as many as nine points. Despite the visitors trimming the deficit down to 23-19 late, consecutive kills by
Ola Wyrzykowska and Garcia clinched the set.
Loyola cleaned up its offense in the second frame and outhit the Blue Raiders 17-15 with only two attacking errors. This allowed the Wolf Pack to sneak ahead for a 27-25 set win.
In the third, Lindsey Wilson trailed 12-7 and 14-10. A timeout by head coach
Josh Kreiner rallied the troops to score four of the next five points. Still, Loyola maintained its slim advantage until
Ana Clara Beltran Sacca's successful attack made the score 20-18 and sparked a four-point Blue Raider swing to put them in front 21-20. After a Wolf Pack timeout, the two sides jousted past the 25-point threshold and eventually settled when a combo block by
Natalie Wandrie and
Sofija Pjevic finished off the set.
The fourth and final frame was all Blue Raiders. A combination of four attack errors, three aces by Wyrzykowska, and a kill each from Garcia and Sacca propelled Lindsey Wilson to a 9-0 lead. Loyola never fully recovered from its sluggish start and ended up hitting -0.114 with twice as many errors as kills.
Garcia contributed 21 of her team's 54 kills. Meanwhile
Luiza Gonçalves dished out 45 assists, her most in a match since October 5, 2024.
Match Two: Lindsey Wilson 3, Spartanburg Methodist (S.C.) 1
The Blue Raiders worked with a handful of contributions to win its second match of the day. A dozen different players recorded kills, six different defenders tallied at least five digs, and four servers recorded multiple aces.
Consecutive services aces from
Cammie Judd highlighted a fast 7-1 start for Lindsey Wilson in the first frame. Kills from Pjevic and
Hana Kisa strengthened the momentum and more work at the net by Garcia ultimately put the home team up a set.
In the second set, coach Kreiner turned to his cast of freshmen to build them some experience.
Brooke Robinson and
Hana Kisa each put down three kills,
Una Grbic posted two aces and a kill, and
Rylee Springer totaled seven assists, a kill, and an ace.
The third frame began as a back-and-forth battle, with Lindsey Wilson taking a 12-9 lead midway through. From there, the hosts kept control and scored the last three points on two kills from
Marija Raonic and one by Sacca.
Much like their earlier match, the Blue Raiders dominated the fourth set, not only hitting 0.429 but holding the Pioneers to -0.192 on the attack. Robinson added to her match total with a set-high three kills.
Lindsey Wilson takes the next two weeks off from competition before traveling to Waxahachie, Texas on August 29-30 for the Texas Two Step Tournament.
