Box Score
A long drive for the parents of a Wayland Baptist Pioneer was met by a short night on the volleyball court.
The No. 20 Pioneers dispatched St. Gregory's in a Sooner Athletic Conference blowout Friday night, 25-10, 25-8, 25-14. Even with a 10-minute intermission, the 7 p.m. match was over in just 70 minutes, plenty of time for Hutcherson Center to be set up for a homecoming pep rally scheduled for 9:30 p.m.
Unfortunately, the quick win didn't give senior
Grecia Rivera's parents, who drove up from Mexico, very long to watch their daughter play. What little time they did see of Grecia on the court, however, was impressive.
"Grecia had a good night," WBU coach
Jim Giacomazzi said.
The senior had 13 kills and hit .393 while also getting nine digs, three aces and three block assists. Thankfully, her parents will be in town several more days to catch other matches, including Saturday's 11:30 a.m. contest against John Brown University.
Against St. Gregory's (5-16, 2-6),
Shahala Hawkins ended with nine kills, hit .353 and had seven total blocks, including four solo. Wayland recorded 11 total blocks.
"We had a very good blocking night, which is something we focused on. Of course when it costs me money, they're going to block out of their minds," teased Giacomazzi, who is donating $5 for every block the team has at home during October to breast cancer awareness.
The Pioneers hit .318 as a team while holding the visitors from Shawnee, Okla., to -.086.
Mercades Torres had 19 digs, and
Ashlyn Westerman produced 32 assists.
"We focused on digging and blocking. We did very well on the blocking side, but need to do a little better on the digging side," Giacomazzi said.
Against an outmatched opponent, the coach said the team's goal "is to get in and out as quickly as we can and minimize the number of points they score. We did a very good job of that in the first and second sets, but in the third set we let things get away from us. Some of those reserves need to step up their game so we can keep the pressure on the other team, regardless of who's in the game."
Still, Wayland's fourth straight win and ninth consecutive sweep was never in doubt. The only time the match was even remotely close was in the third when St. Greg's held a 9-7 lead. But Wayland ran off the next five points and went on to put the match away with ease.
"The third set got a little sloppy," Giacomazzi said. "We got a lot of different people some playing time."
It's the sixth time in Giacomazzi's seven seasons at Wayland that the Pioneers have posted at least 20 wins. The only season that didn't happen was last year when Wayland finished one win short at 19-15.
"They're getting better, that's the main thing," the coach said of his team.
Next up for Wayland is John Brown (10-14, 4-3) at 11:30 a.m. Saturday. Giacomazzi called the Golden Eagles "a team on the move. We can't underestimate them. They're a solid, well-coached team."
Giacomazzi said the Golden Eagles recently were hit by the death of a player's mother.
"They've had some distractions, but they're recovering from that and bonding more as a team," he said. "Every day is a better day for them."
