BOURBONNAIS, Ill. – The Lady Tigers of Campbellsville University (8-2, 5-0 MSC) were on the road at the Holiday Inn Express Invite Friday. In the first day of competition, they bested both the Jaguars of Governors State (2-7, 0-5 CCAC) and the Wolves of Cardinal Stritch University (7-6, 2-3 CCAC).
Game one: Campbellsville 3, Governors State 1
The first-place team in the Mid-South Conference, your Lady Tigers, were riding a five-game winning streak having just beaten Lindsey Wilson College in straight sets on Wednesday night. The Lady Tigers were looking to make this mid-season tournament one that could catapult them into a strong second half of the season.
In the first set, Campbellsville University took control early and led by as many as ten points. Late in the set, that advantage grew to twelve as CU captured it, 25-14. Leading the way for the Lady Tigers was Cierra Merrick with five kills.
The second set proved to be a little different as it seemed the Lady Tigers may have let their guard down a bit and the Jaguars made the most of it. Governors State opened up a 10-3 lead using a combination of strong serves, timely kills, and costly errors from Campbellsville. The Jaguars were in complete control midway through the set, but then the Lady Tigers were able to make some corrections, gain momentum, and get to within two points, 13-15. Just when things started to look promising, the Jaguars put together a three-point run to extend their lead to 13-18. Campbellsville was able to tie the score at 21 when Marianne Cassiano, appearing for the first time this season, sent a searing shot for a kill. The errors continued for the Lady Tigers though going on to lose the set, 22-25.
With both teams tied at one set each, Campbellsville led throughout the entire third set. A kill by McKenna Barfield put the Lady Tigers up 12-8 and they simply took off from there. Building a nine-point lead and continuing forward, Campbellsville won 25-10. The difference in the set was the Lady Tigers' relentless offense producing a .467 hitting percentage. Campbellville's defense was also up to the task holding the Jaguars to a .167 hitting percentage.
The Lady Tigers were determined to extend their winning streak as the fourth set began. Campbellsville pounced on the Jaguars and never let up. They took the lead early and often and dominated throughout. They finished the set defeating Governors State 25-9 and extended their winning streak to six games. Leading the way for the Lady Tigers in the match was Merrick with 14 kills boasting a .591 hitting percentage. Cassiano recorded a double-double with 12 kills and 11 digs. Taylor Thacker added 17 digs.
The difference in this match was the serving game. The Lady Tigers aced the Jaguars 12 times while the Jaguars only did so five times. When Campbellsville was not smashing aces, they were forcing reception errors. The Jaguars were forced into 11 reception errors while the Lady Tigers only had five.
Game Two: Campbellsville 3, Cardinal Stritch 2
In the first set, Campbellsville created an early 13-7 advantage behind some precision serving from Cassiano and strong hitting from Merrick. The Wolves fought their way back using a five-point run to get to within one point. However, CU made the most of Cardinal Stritch's consecutive errors to build a commanding lead. A kill by Cassiano put the Lady Tigers up 20-14. CU eventually took the first set by the score of 25-15. Campbellsville's offense produced a .242 hitting percentage while their suffocating defense kept the Wolves to a .000 hitting percentage.
In the second set, the Lady Tigers came out a bit flat and the Wolves took advantage of the Lady Tigers building a 6-9-point lead. A kill by Merrick sent MacKenzie Poteet to the serving line and there she constructed a five-point run to give the Lady Tigers a 11-9 lead. With their adjustments made and their flat play behind them, the Lady Tigers cruised the rest of the way, 25-15.
Campbellsville seemed determined to put the Wolves away as they had their seventh consecutive victory in their sights. Early in the third set, Merrick had back-to-back kills to give the Lady Tigers a lead, but the Wolves had other things in mind. Cardinal Stritch regained control behind some miscues from the Lady Tigers to build a 16-12 lead midway through the set. Campbellsville fought and clawed back into the game but they could not overcome some costly mistakes. The Wolves defeated the Lady Tigers, 22-25.
The Lady Tigers let one slip away, but aimed to get their match back on track. Both the Lady Tigers and the Wolves battled back and forth with both teams tying the score on five separate occasions throughout the set. With the score tied at 17, Cardinal Stritch captialized on Lady Tigers' attacking errors to go on a five-point run and force CU to take a timeout. Campbellsville took the next two points after the timeout but the Wolves were too much to handle as they won set four, 22-25 knotting the match at two sets apiece.
To start the fifth set, the Lady Tigers won the coin toss and elected to serve. After exchanging serves and the score tied at one, Campbellsville sent Cassiano to the serving line where she headlined a six-point run and put the Lady Tigers up 8-1. With a commanding lead, the Lady Tigers dominated the overtime set 15-5.
With this victory, Campbellsville secured their seventh consecutive victory opening the regular season tournament play in great shape. Three players recorded double figures for CU Paige Merrick had 37 assists and 18 digs, C. Merrick had 24 kills (.400 kill percentage) and 12 digs, and Cassiano connected on 12 kills (.289% kill percentage) and an astonishing 21 digs. Thacker had 21 digs respectively.
The Lady Tigers will be back in action Saturday for day two of the Holiday Inn Express Invite. Campbellsville is scheduled to take on Columbia College, who is receiving votes in the latest edition of the NAIA Women's Volleyball Coaches' Top 25 Poll, and host Olivet Nazarene University.
