No. 5 Lady Saints Sweep in Garden City

GARDEN CITY, Kan. – The No. 5 volleyball team broke in the floor at Garden City’s new Conestoga Arena with 3-0 (25-18 25-18, 26-24) victory. The win marks the 22nd straight victory over the Broncbusters.

While the match ended in a sweep, all three sets were much closer than the Lady Saints would have liked. Through the first ten points in the first set, the Lady Saints hung on to a close 6-4 lead with kills coming from Viviane Viana, Giovanna Tapigliani and Mariana Nascimento. The Broncbusters scored three of the next four to tie it at seven, but that would be as close as they would get to gaining a lead.

An ace by Briana Domino started a 5-2 run for the Lady Saints that put them up 13-9 midway through the set. The lead would stay at four until a Giovanna Kuntze block would put them up five at 20-15. The lead increased to seven following a Nascimento kill, ending the set 25-18.

Viana began set two with two straight kills and the Lady Saints would add on to those to make the score 7-3 through the first ten points. The Broncbusters fought their way back into the set, going on a 6-2 run to tie the set at nine. Two straight blocks by Garden City gave them an 11-9 advantage.

The team traded points for the next twelve points. Down 17-15, a Tapigliani kill sparked a 6-0 run, putting the Lady Saints up 21-17. The Broncbusters ended the run with a kill, but the Lady Saints quickly ended the set with a 4-0 run, winning set two 25-18.

The third set began with the Lady Saints jumping out to another 7-4 lead. Once again, the Broncbusters climbed their way back into the match, tying it at ten. The teams stayed tied until the Broncbusters gained an advantage with a 3-0 run, taking the lead 18-15. Garden City kept their three-point advantage late in the set with a 22-19 lead.

Just as it seemed the Broncbusters would force a fourth set, Domino recorded two straight kills to push the momentum back to the Lady Saints. The next four points saw the teams trade points until two straight Domino kills gave the Lady Saints a 25-24 advantage. Kuntze ended the set with a kill, giving the Lady Saints set three 26-24.

The Lady Saints (24-1, 9-0) finished the match with 49 kills, led by Nascimento (15), Viana (15) and Tapigliani (13). Tapigliani came one dig away from recording another doubl-double. Kuntze put the Lady Saints in position to score, coming away with 36 assists.

Nathiellen Machado led Seward with 16 digs, while Domino (12) and Kuntze (12) both recorded double-digit digs. Nascimento led the Lady Saints in blocks with three.

The Lady Saints have a day off before traveling to Dodge City to take on the Conquistadors at 6:30 p.m.