Indiana volleyball traveled to Christi Corpus, Texas this weekend to compete in the Islanders Classic. The team went 2-1, sweeping both of the games on Saturday.
The teams competing in the tournament included Southern Methodist University, Sam Houston State University, Texas A&M University-Corpus Christi and Indiana. Before this weekend, the Hoosiers had never competed against any of the three other teams.
Indiana’s first match of the weekend was against SMU on Friday. The Hoosiers were down 8-11 in the opening set but received a burst of help with kills from sophomore outside hitter Mady Saris and senior middle blocker Kaley Rammelsberg to cut the lead to 11-13. However, Indiana was unable to use this momentum and lost the set 25-19.
[Related: Indiana volleyball goes 2-1 in Indiana Invitational over the weekend]
The second set started off strong for Indiana, holding a 5-0 lead. Junior outside hitter Morgan Geddes contributed back-to-back kills in her first appearance of the season to give Indiana a 14-]13 lead. However, the Mustangs went on a 12-5 run to steal the second set 25-19.
Indiana continued to fight in the third set in hopes of keeping the match alive, but the Hoosiers lost their final set 25-19.
Indiana faced Sam Houston State Saturday morning and was in control of the entire series. Geddes, senior middle blocker Kaley Rammelsberg and Saris dispatched a series of kills to gain a 17-10 lead. Saris shined again in the end of the set with three kills in a row to win the game 25-19.
With the highlight of back-to-back service aces from sophomore setter Camryn Haworth, the Hoosiers ended the second set on 8-3 run and won 25-13. Indiana began the final set with a dominant 15-4 lead, forcing Sam Houston State to take a timeout. Saris ended the game with a kill, earning her 15th on the night and a straight set victory for the Hoosiers.
[Related: Indiana's volleyball season begins Friday despite unanswered questions about Steve Aird]
Indiana faced TAMU-CC in the evening and once again commanded the entire match. The Hoosiers started off the first set with a 7-0 run with kills from Gedde and Saris. Three of the final four points came from Saris, as Indiana won the set 25-18.
The Hoosiers were up 18-12 in the second match when Haworth and Saris delivered back-to-back kills. Indiana won the second 25-19 and won the final set of the tournament 25-14.
Indiana will travel to Raleigh, North Carolina on Thursday to face North Carolina State University, Western Carolina University and Texas Christian University.
