AVE MARIA, Fla. (September 18, 2021) – The Webber International University women's volleyball team saw their six-match winning streak come to an end on Saturday afternoon, after falling 3-1 (25-17, 25-27, 25-15, 25-19) to Ave Maria University in their 2021 conference opener.
 
After dropping the first set to the Gyrenes (9-5, 1-1 SUN), the Warriors (9-5, 0-1) would see themselves down 16-11 halfway through the second set. The Warriors would then score four-straight to battle back to 16-15. Later in the set, Webber would score three in a row including kills from Emily Bowen and Bailey Sikkema to level it at 20-20. Tied at 25, a kill from Nadia Reid would give the Warriors the advantage and an attack error from the Gyrenes sealed the second set for Webber.
 
However, it would be the only set that the Warriors would capture in the match.
 
The Warriors were led offensively by Reid and Bowen each with 11 kills. Amanda Vega would finish the match with 18 assists followed closely behind by Ana Clara Araujo with 16, who also contributed with 11 digs. It was Araujo's second double-double so far this season.
 
Defensively, Kiersten Tisdale led the team with 20 digs, while Reid and Teodora Ranitovic finished with four blocks each.
 
"We showed a lot of fight, but we just couldn't execute the game plan going into the match," said Head Coach Matt Geer. "The first conference match is always exciting, and the team is ready to get to work in the coming weeks to meet our goals. We just need to start quicker in the beginning of the match."
 
The Warriors will play two more conference matches on the road next week as they first travel to Brunswick, Georgia to take on the College of Coastal Georgia on Wednesday, September 22 at 7 p.m. Then, on Saturday, September 25, Webber travels to Keiser University to battle the Seahawks for the first time this season.