COLUMBIA, Mo. – The Columbia College volleyball team opened the Hampton Inn Volleyball Classic in style Friday, sweeping both matches on the tournament's opening day to move to 2-0 on the young season.
The Cougars needed just three sets to dispatch Tabor, 25-15, 25-16, 25-8, in the morning session before returning to the court in the afternoon and doing it again to St. Ambrose (Iowa), winning 25-19, 25-17, 25-16.
Columbia was nearly untouchable at the net in the opener, hitting .362 as a team while limiting Tabor to a .020 clip. The Cougars pulled away for good in the third set, racing out to an 8-1 cushion and closing out the sweep with an 11-2 spurt to finish it, 25-8. Rowan Carr and Katelyn Spengler each finished with eight kills to pace the attack, while Alayna Backes added six kills and five total blocks. Hannah Vogt distributed 17 assists and chipped in 10 digs, while Alexa Olson added 16 assists of her own.
Game two against St. Ambrose was much the same story, with Columbia again controlling play from the service line and the net. Isabella Kincaid was the story of the match, totaling 14 kills without an error on 31 swings for a blistering .452 hitting percentage and a match-best 15.5 points. Carr added another eight kills, Vogt dished out 22 assists, and Taylor Johnson turned in a match-high 20 digs to anchor the back row.
Game One Leaders (vs. Tabor)
- Kills: Rowan Carr (8), Katelyn Spengler (8), Isabella Kincaid (6), Kenedi Canty (6), Alayna Backes (6)
- Assists: Hannah Vogt (17), Alexa Olson (16)
- Digs: Rowan Carr (14), Taylor Johnson (13), Hannah Vogt (10)
- Blocks: Alayna Backes (1 solo, 4 assist), Isabella Kincaid (1 solo, 2 assist)
Game Two Leaders (vs. St. Ambrose)
