Avon Park, FL - The Webber International Women's Volleyball team faced the Ave Maria Gyrenes in the opening round of the SUNC Tournament Tuesday night. Four sets were not enough for either team as the Warriors prevailed in a five-set barnburner to advance to the SUNC Semifinals.
The Warriors were ahead very early in the first set, taking a commanding 6-0 lead as Paysee Crow led off the with six straight serves. Bailey Sikkema, Nadia Reid, and Savanna Wilhite all picked up kills in the sequence. Reid and Sikkema contributed the next two points on a kill and a solo block. Multiple errors from the Gyrenes and a service ace by Lily Arnold had the Warriors up 12-5. The Gyrenes would cut the lead to two, before a block from Reid and Teodora Ranitovic and two additional kills from Reid put Webber ahead 18-12. Reid, Sikkema, Wilhite, and Jaizah Anderson all added kills before a block from Crow and Ranitovic and a Gyrene error ended the first set with Webber ahead 25-16.
The second set started off similarly as Sikkema got two early kills. Sikkema and Wilhite then combined for two blocks before a service ace from Andrea Padilla put the Warriors ahead 6-2. The Gyrenes would tie it before the set started to go back and forth. Anderson and Crow picked up kills as well as Reid picking up a block to tie the game 10-10. Reid and Wilhite got another block before the Gyrenes rattled off four straight to take a 16-12 lead.Sikkema, Anderson, Wilhite, and Ranitovic picked up kills, with Wilhite getting a solo block as well, to put the Warriors within one, 18-17.Sikkema and Anderson would net the last two kills for the Warriors as the Webber would drop set two 25-22.
Tanasha Cooksey, Sikkema, Reid, and Anderson would put the Warriors up 8-4 in the third set. Kills from Ranitovic, Sikkema, Crow, and Bailey Berger extended the Warrior lead to six points, 14-8. Cooksey, Anderson, and Crow brought the lead even higher to eight, until two more kills from Anderson and one from Crow put Webber up by 11, 22-11. Anderson and Reid ended the third set for the Warriors, as they took it 25-16.
Reid, Sikkema, and Cooksey all got kills at the start of the fourth set to give Webber a 3-0 lead. The Gyrenes answered back, taking a slim 7-6 lead, until Anderson, Ranitovic, and Reid picked up kills to give Webber a 10-7 lead. Ave Maria answered by taking a three point lead 15-12, with Reid picking up another kill along the way. Reid and Sikkema each got a kill, while Sikkema and Wilhite combined for a block to tie the set at 15. The Gyrenes would outscore the Warriors 10-4 after this, with Sikkema and Reid picking up three more kills before the Warriors dropped the fourth set 25-19.
In the fifth set, the Gyrenes started out hot with an 8-3 lead, Sikkema added another kill while Reid had a service ace for the Warriors. Webber would not back down however, as Ranitovic and Sikkema combined for another block while Anderson and Reid also picked up kills. Ave Maria took a timeout with the Warriors knocking before Reid sank two more kills to tie the set 10-10. The Warriors got another kill from Reid, before back to back service aces from Crow and a kill from Sikkema to end it gave the Warriors the fifth set 15-13, and the match 3-2.
The Warriors had two players notch double doubles in Tuesday nights game. Reid had 17 kills to go along with 13 digs, while Crow had 42 assists to go along with 15 digs. Sikkema led the team with 19 kills. Berger led with 22 digs, while Abigail Baxter added 16 digs and five assists on the night.
The Warriors will be back in action on Friday, November 10th as they head to Miami Gardens to take on SUNC Tournament one seed St. Thomas in the semifinals.
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