Trinity volleyball’s regular season came to an end after their games in Georgetown last week. The team extended their win streak to 12 games, which gives the Tigers the first seed heading into the Southern Collegiate Athletic Conference (SCAC) Tournament quarterfinal on Nov. 15.
In the first game of the week, the Tigers faced The University of Dallas. Fifth-year Mackenzie Logan led the team with 12 Kills throughout the sets. The Tigers took the first two sets 25-22 and 25-17, though Dallas came back in the third set 25-23. Junior outside hitter Reagan Whatley had three aces among her first nine serves leading the way for the Tigers to take the third match winning 25-8. First-year Sophia Burke hit a career-high with seven kills in the game.
The Tigers swept game two against McMurry University on Saturday morning. Fifth-year middle blocker Maddie Fate had 11 kills and four blocks in the match. Sophomore libero Jenna Rodriguez led the team with 17 digs. Maggi Linker, assistant volleyball coach, shared moments from the weekend she felt reflected some individual players’ growth.
“This weekend we had a number of players really shine on the court and have the opportunity to showcase their individual growth,” Linker said. “Sophia Burke and Angelica Medina, first-year right side hitters, both had their career high in kills against Dallas and Centenary respectively and sophomore Lauren McCarthey led our team in blocks against Centenary.”
The second sweep of the day was in the Tigers’ third game against Centenary College. First-year Angelica Medina had a .333 hitting percentage with seven kills. Sophomore Conalleey McWilliams reflected on a moment in the game she felt spoke to the hard work the team has been putting into the season.
“Against Centenary, the non-starters had the chance to go in and play, and they did really, really well and absolutely crushed the other team,” McWilliams said. “I think that is a testament to how hard our whole team works, not just the upperclassmen or normal starters.”
This weekend’s games placed the Tigers record for the regular season at 21-6 and 14-1 for conference play. As the Tigers head into the SCAC Gold Division Tournament, McWilliams shared how the team has been preparing.
“These next few days of practice will be focusing on our team and our side of the net, making sure our serve and pass game stays consistent and strong, staying scrappy on defense, and being more aggressive on offense than ever,” McWilliams said.
Linker has watched the team develop into where they are now in the season. She discussed how she has seen the team mindset shape heading into the SCAC Championship.
“I think this entire season has shaped our team’s mindset going into the SCAC Championship,” Linker said. “We know how tough this conference is and how teams are going to push us every game. We don’t take anyone in the SCAC lightly and are very excited about competing in another SCAC tournament.”
The momentum from this weekend has led the team to reflect on the work that has gotten them to this point. Courtney Pope, sophomore middle hitter, reflected on the team’s growth this season.
“Our team has grown in many ways,” Pope said. “First, we’ve done a really good job of spreading out our offense and running different plays. We have upped our serving and defense which helped us start strong and finish strong. We’ve also worked on our mental aspect and having a killer mentality no matter where we are on the court.”
