Practice is paying off for the Wayland Baptist volleyball team.
"We're seeing improvement on the things we're working on in practice," Pioneer coach
Jim Giacomazzi said after Wayland fell to Texas Wesleyan on Friday evening in Hutcherson Center, 25-12, 25-22, 25-22.
The win kept the Lady Rams perfect on the season at 3-0 while Wayland continues its search for its first victory after three outings.
After Texas Wesleyan dominated the first set, the Pioneers – who used just seven players, or half as many as the visitors from Fort Worth – held their own in the final two.
"They played really well in the first set, and we didn't," Giacomazzi said.
 In the second, Wayland held a 13-10 lead when the Lady Rams scored 10 straight points to take control. The Pioneers fought back but could only get as close as two points.
Then in the third, WBU appeared to have things in hand, up 20-15 following a run of five straight points on the serve of
Tevia Bell. But the Lady Rams again mounted a comeback, notching seven straight points on the strength of a combinaton of strong kills and Wayland errors.
A kill by Pioneer
Kellie Kozak brought Wayland to within 22-21. After the Lady Rams scored the next two, a kill by
Amber Daniel staved off match point, but only temporarily as a kill by Nyia Anderson ended it.
"We knew what they were going to do, but just knowing doesn't mean you can stop them," Giacomazzi said.
Wayland hit .151 versus .262 for TXWES. Kozak (.214) and Daniel (.269) paced the Pioneers with 10 kills each, followed by
Jayla Schultz (.267) with seven. Daniel wound up with 14 digs while Bell had 10 and
Paxton Patterson nine. Patterson and Schultz logged a pair of block assists each, while Kozak had one solo and one assist.
Lucie Mahelova recorded all but two of Wayland's 32 assists. Bell had two aces.
 "Amber had another double-double. She was all over the place. She sees the court so well defensively," Giacomazzi said. "Kellie had another good night hitting against some really good blockers. She had some nice swings."
The coach applauded Schultz and
Alexa Hinojos, WBU's two freshmen on the floor.
"They're getting some good playing time," he said. "The college game is a lot faster than they've ever played, especially Alexa. She had a really nice block. If we can get those long arms of hers moving faster, she'll be very successful. That was a nice night for Jayla."
Bailey Foy paced TXWES with 13 kills while hitting .571.
"As we pass well, we play better," Giacomazzi said, adding, "Our serve-receive (four errors) was pretty good. We just have to anticipate. We missed some under-served balls when we didn't get our feet there."
Giacomazzi said one thing the Pioneers have stressed in practice is blocking, and it's starting to show.
"I was pleased with the touches they got and the fact they're recognizing it. We did pretty well against a solid team with solid hitters that distributes the ball well. We'll continue to work on it."
Wayland, following a home scrimmage against Trinity Valley at 2 p.m. Saturday, has three games remaining on its fall schedule. The Pioneers go to Central Christian (2-9) in Kansas next Friday, host Science & Arts of Oklahoma (1-7) on Nov. 6, then go to Southwestern Christian on Nov. 13. WBU has a final scrimmage against Randall University in Moore, Okla., on Nov. 14.
"I don't know much about the teams we're playing next, just that they've been playing since the first of September," Giacomazzi said.
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