The Celts opened up their season with a sweep of the Texas Lutheran Bulldogs. They rolled the Bulldogs, taking game one, 3-1 and finishing off the night with a 3-0 victory in game two.
Game 1: UST-3, TLU-1
UST started their first set clicking on all cylinders as the Celts never trailed. A rather closely contested set overall, but every run made by the bulldogs was answered by the Celts. As the set came to a close, two straight points would give the ladies the 25-23 advantage.
The second set would mirror that of the first in that it was all UST. With the largest lead for the Celts being 8 points, they never felt pressure from the Bulldogs in set two. An Elizabeth Easley kill would solidify the set two victory and put TLU on their heels heading into what would be the deciding set.
As the third set progressed it look as if the Celts were just too much for Bulldogs. However, they had more fight left in them to close out set three. As UST attained a 20-19 lead, TLU responded by scoring six of the sets last eight points to stay alive and steal the set 25-22.
As soon as the first serve it was obvious the Celts were ready to play this set. They would open up scoring the first nine of eleven points. This deficit was too much for the Bulldogs as their comeback fell short. UST clinched game one with a 25-21 victory to lock in their first win of the 2021 season.
Defense was a huge part of the Celts' success as they had three players with over 22 digs in the match; Senior Libero Kaylyn Latin had 38 digs herself. Offensively the scoring was evenly distributed between Alyssa Ajlouny, Aliana Lanik, Laynee Beam and Elizabeth Easley. Kelise Walker would dish out a game-high 30 assists in route to the victory.
Game 2: UST-3, TLU-0
Game two of the doubleheader was all Celts as they opened up the first set smothering the Bulldogs. Kelsie Walker started the game with a pair of aces and served for the Celts first seven points. TLU has no answer for UST's quick start and serving errors would quickly plague the Bulldogs putting this game out of reach early. UST would claim set one, 25-15.
As TLU cleaned up their act in set two, the competition picked up between both teams. However, the theme of UST's defense overwhelming the Bulldogs prevailed as many long rallies resulted in points for the Celts. Laynee Beam would provide a spark off the bench providing multiple kills for UST in the middle of set two. The Celts were able to squeak out with a 25-23 win to yet again put TLU's backs against the wall.
This time, set three would be in favor of the Celts. For the first time today, UST had to muster up a comeback to secure their second win. After a quick start by the Bulldogs, the Celts answered with a run of their own in order to regain control of the match. As every Celt in uniform saw the court in this set, they were able to close out TLU with a 25-20 win.
The second win of the season featured Elizabeth Easley finishing with 14 kills. Defensively, Kaylyn Latin again had a game high 21 digs.
The Celts will hit the court again next week when they travel to Colorado to challenge Colorado College.
