BABSON PARK, Fla. (September 9, 2020) – The 2020 season opener for the Webber International University women's volleyball team, which was also the Warriors' home opener and first Sun Conference match of the season, resulted in a 3-1 (25-21, 25-23, 21-25, 25-22) defeat for Webber against Polk County rival Southeastern University.

Despite the loss, it was a spirited performance for Webber (0-1 overall, 0-1 The Sun Conference) against a Southeastern (1-1, 1-1) team that was picked to finish third in the conference this season.

Each of the four sets were decided by less than four points, and each of the first three sets featured ties at either 19-19 or later.

The first set was tied at 19-19 until Southeastern finished it off on a 6-2 run; and then in the second set, Webber rattled off four points in a row to tie it at 23-23 before two errors by the Warriors gave the Fire the 2-0 set advantage.

The two teams were tied yet again late in set number three, this time at 21-21 before four straight points by Webber on an assisted block by Nora Burgos-Heredia and Kelsey McKinley, back-to-back service aces by Madelyn Glouner, and a Fire attack error got the home team on the scoreboard.

Then in the final set, Webber led 18-17 before Southeastern scored three straight to jump ahead 20-18. The Fire then increased their run to 6-1 overall to make the score 23-19, and a kill by McKinley to make it 24-22 was the last point of the evening for the Warriors.

Statistically, Webber recorded 14 aces on the evening, including five each from Glouner and freshman Kiersten Tisdale.

Individually, Webber was led by setters Camryn Brown and Paysee Crow with 17 and 16 assists, respectively. Crow, a freshman from Temple, Texas, nearly recorded a double-double in her collegiate debut by adding nine digs while Brown also stuffed the stat sheet herself with eight digs.

The Warriors were led in digs by Tisdale with 17 while Abbey Darress added eight, and offensively, senior Svenja Koenig finished with eight kills, McKinley had seven kills, and both Glouner and Burgos-Heredia had six. Burgos-Heredia, a freshman from Doral, Florida, did her damage with an outstanding .500 attack percentage.

"We are excited for our new season and the future growth of our program," spoke Webber's Head Coach Gretchen Hand. "Tonight was a great start towards that, and we look forward to polishing it up going forward. Go Warriors."

After Webber dropped the first two sets by a combined total of only six points, the overall statistics between the two teams evened out as both teams finished with a final hitting percentage between .050 percent and .100 percent. Additionally, the teams finished no more than three away from each other in kills, blocks, assists and digs.

Next up for the Warriors will be a pair of nonconference matches at home on Saturday, September 12. The Warriors will take on Trinity Baptist College first at 6 p.m. followed by Trinity College (Fla.) at 7:30 p.m. After that, Webber will return to conference play against Crooked Lake rival Warner University on Wednesday, September 16, in Lake Wales, Florida