BLINN VOLLEYBALL FALLS TO TRINITY VALLEY IN FOUR SETS

(Story by Joe Alberico, Blinn College Sports Information)

The No. 12 Blinn College volleyball team dropped a Region 14 home match to No. 15 Trinity Valley Community College 25-16, 31-33, 23-25, 22-25 on Thursday at the Kruse Center in Brenham, Texas.

The Buccaneers fell to 22-5 overall and 4-4 in Region 14 play.

Blinn controlled large stretches of all four sets but struggled to close out key points, allowing the Cardinals to rally for the win.

The second set proved particularly costly. Blinn fought off six set points at 23-24, 24-25, 25-26, 26-27, 27-28, and 28-29. The Bucs then held leads of 30-29 and 31-30 but were unable to finish the set, allowing Trinity Valley to even the match.

The Cardinals carried that momentum into the third and fourth sets, edging Blinn in both to escape with the victory.

“We’re controlling every set, and we were inventing ways to keep them around,” Blinn head coach Gregg Whitis said. “Trinity Valley is a good team, and if you let them hang around, eventually they’ll get you.

“We did a lot of good stuff in the front two-thirds of every set. We played well enough to give ourselves a chance in every set, so it’s disappointing to only win one of them.”

Sophomore outside hitter Aliyah Harris led the Bucs with 21 kills, while freshman hitter Akira Smallwood added 14. Smallwood finished with three total blocks.

Freshman setter Skylar Herring dished out 36 assists and collected 14 digs. Sophomore libero/defensive specialist Natalia Silva added 12 digs, and freshman libero/DS Karolynn Youngblood recorded three digs and two service aces.

Blinn finished with 54 kills, 47 assists, 53 digs, six aces, and 13 total blocks.

The Bucs return to action with a Region 14 road trip to No. 5 Tyler Junior College at 6 p.m. Tuesday, Oct. 13, in Tyler, Texas.