Saturday Night represented an opportunity for the Lee University Lady Flames (33-5) volleyball team to advance to the final site of the NAIA National Tournament, but the opponent, Freed-Hardeman University (23-13), proved to be a worthy one.
The Lady Lions came out and took advantage of Lee’s mistakes in the first set, and Lee found themselves trailing 1-0 after Freed claimed a 25-23 set victory. The Lady Flames, however, bounced back, taking the next three sets 25-22, 35-21, and 25-22 to win the match 3-1 and advance to the pool play stage of the NAIA tournament, which will begin Dec. 1 in Sioux City, iowa. Christa Hutchison (14), Milica Krsmanovic (13), and Stephanie Todd (12) all recorded double digit kills for the Lady Flames, while Diana Silva (18), Nataly Guitierrez (12), and Sydney Rice (10) accomplished the feat for the Lady Lions.
“We didn’t pass particularly well in the first set,” noted Head Coach Andrea Hudson after the match. “Freed did what good teams do, they took advantage of our mistakes and got ahead early.”
The real turning point came in the pivotal third set, when the Lady Flames took control on both the offensive and defensive side of the ball. In the set, Lee’s hitters killed the ball at a .393 clip, while the defense held the Lady Lions to a .200 hitting percentage.
“We really stepped it up in that third set,” said Hudson. “That really turned things around for us and we were able to build on that momentum to put the match away in the fourth.”
Gretchen Higdon (24) and Kelsey Leffew (20) each posted double figures in assists, and Sarah Smith recorded 10 digs in the match. Kayla Carlisle was a part of nine blocks for the Lady Flames as well.
“We played well tonight in all facets of the game,” Hudson stated, “but give Freed-Hardeman credit, they fought hard and pushed us to the limit in each set. That’s the sign of a great team.”
The Lady Flames now wait to find out where they will be seeded in the pool play portion of the 24 team tournament. Those seedings are expected to be announced Sunday by the NAIA National Office in Kansas City, Mo.