SAN ANTONIO, Texas. — Campbellsville University went 4-0 at the Halo Classic on Friday and Saturday, defeating Rocky Mountain, Our Lady of the Lake, Saint Francis and Montana Western in four sets behind balanced offense, improved in-match response and steady production from its returning core.
- Campbellsville won all four matches in four sets, dropping the opening set each time before taking control over the final three frames. The Tigers defeated Rocky Mountain 22-25, 25-17, 26-24, 25-19; Our Lady of the Lake 24-26, 25-20, 25-19, 25-17; Saint Francis 16-25, 25-21, 25-15, 25-21; and Montana Western 34-36, 25-23, 25-18, 25-18.
- The Tigers hit .261 across the weekend, totaling 214 kills against 71 errors on 548 swings, while holding opponents to a combined .175 hitting percentage.
- Elif Akcivi paced Campbellsville's attack with 52 kills over the four matches, reaching double figures in each contest, including 15 against Our Lady of the Lake and 14 against Montana Western.
- Kati Vest directed the offense with 138 assists while also adding 27 kills and hitting .373 for the weekend, giving Campbellsville scoring production from the setter position.
- Brooke Hager was efficient in the middle, finishing with 27 kills, three errors and a .407 hitting percentage while contributing 9.5 total blocks.
- Campbellsville's serve pressured opponents throughout the weekend, with the Tigers collecting 25 aces. Celestina Retumban led the way with eight aces, including five against Our Lady of the Lake.
- The Tigers produced 30 total blocks across the four matches and outblocked their opponents by a 30-15 margin.
Campbellsville opened the weekend Friday against Rocky Mountain and responded after dropping the first set, 25-22. The Tigers hit .375 in the second set to even the match, then edged the Battlin' Bears 26-24 in the third before closing with a 25-19 fourth-set win. Akcivi led Campbellsville with 12 kills, while Thorne and Erwin each added 10. Vest finished with 33 assists, nine digs and nine kills without an attack error, and Hager added seven kills on a .400 clip with four solo blocks.
Later Friday, Campbellsville again recovered from a narrow opening-set loss, this time against host Our Lady of the Lake. After falling 26-24 in the first, the Tigers won the next three sets by scores of 25-20, 25-19 and 25-17. Campbellsville hit .429 in the fourth set to finish the match, led by Akcivi's 15 kills. Erwin added 12 kills, Thorne had 11 and Retumban delivered five service aces. Vest posted 39 assists as the Tigers finished with 53 kills and 10 aces.
The Tigers started Saturday against Saint Francis and overcame their largest set loss of the weekend, rebounding from a 25-16 first-set defeat. Campbellsville answered by hitting .429 in the second set and .393 in the third, taking control with 25-21 and 25-15 wins before finishing the match 25-21 in the fourth. Akcivi led the Tigers with 11 kills, Vest added eight kills with no errors and 29 assists, and Erwin contributed eight kills.
Campbellsville closed the weekend against Montana Western in another four-set comeback. After a 36-34 opening-set loss, the Tigers steadied the match with a 25-23 win in the second, then held Montana Western to hitting percentages of .094 and .091 in the final two sets while winning both 25-18. Akcivi finished with 14 kills and 15 digs, Thorne added 12 kills, and Vest totaled 37 assists, 10 digs and eight kills. Retumban added 13 digs and three aces as Campbellsville completed the 4-0 weekend.
