LACEY, Wash. – For the second consecutive season, the Saints are off to their best start in program history after defeating Western New Mexico 3-0 for the record-setting sixth consecutive win to begin the season.
Saint Martin's (6-0) kicked off play in their SMU Tournament this weekend by hosting the Mustangs (0-5). The Saints defeated WNMU in straight sets. After setting records for best start and most wins in a season last season, Head Coach
Dan Behnke has SMU volleyball brimming with potential and geared up to make a historic run in 2022.
In the first set, SMU set the tone of the match scoring five unanswered points. The Saints lead the entire set and won it 25-19.
Saint Martin's followed up their last set opening with a 5-1 early lead in the second set. The Mustangs showed their grit and fought back to tie the game up at 22 a piece. The Saints held on to win the set 27-25.
In the final set, WNMU turned the tides, getting out to an early 3-0 lead. SMU responded with three unanswered points of their own and from there the two teams were within striking distance of each other for most of the set. The Saints pulled away late and won the set 25-19 and the match 3-0.
After the win, coach Behnke praised his team's performance saying, "I'm proud of our team's growth over the past few weeks and it's great to see we're moving in the right direction."
Sophomore
Maddy Gooding was the star of Saint Martin's offensive efforts, collecting 11 kills, an ace and two solo blocks on her way to a 14 point performance. Behind her,
Tia Allen recorded eight kills and
Jennifer Soha had five.
Abigail Halstead and
Mackenzie Gilchrist each contributed an ace to the victory effort.
Karla Soto recorded 26 assists on the night.
On the defensive side, Allen (11) and Soto (10) were everywhere as their combined effort accounted for 21 digs. Halstead also got in on the action with eight digs.
The Saints have two games on the slate for day two of the SMU Tournament tomorrow with their first game against Colorado Christian at 11 a.m. and their second game at 7 p.m. against Adelphi. Live stats and video will be available on smusaints.com.
