In a three-set sweep, The Master’s University women’s volleyball team advanced out of the opening round of the NAIA Women’s Volleyball National Championship Tournament over the Benedictine (KS) Ravens Saturday night, Nov. 23 in The MacArthur Center.

The Lady Mustangs (21-6) will now head to Sioux City, Iowa, the final site to go after the team championship.

TMU won decisively 25-18, 25-15, 25-18. The team hit .309 and held the Ravens to just .152, with an advantage in kills (43-35) and aces (5-2).

But it was the block that became the most powerful difference-maker. The Master’s finished with 11 blocks compared to Benedictine’s one.

“We had the opportunity to create a good scout, come up with a plan, and [the team] followed that plan and executed it,” said TMU Head Coach Annett Davis. “Whether it was blocking, passing … it was a really good passing game for us as well. The more you can scout a team and have the time to practice, it’s always going to help.”

Coach Davis points to a turning point being the team’s trip to Nebraska, where they played four matches, three of which were against ranked teams. They defeated No. 16 Indiana University Kokomo 3-0, took No. 6 Midland to a fifth set before losing, and took a set off then No. 2 Northwestern College, now ranked No. 1 by the NAIA.

“I think when we went to Nebraska we proved to ourselves that we are a really good team and (the team’s) confidence started building there,” Davis said. “And then week after week their confidence kept growing. And so even when we’ve been down, this team will fight and try to come back. I think they truly believe they can beat anyone. We haven’t had a team like that with that level of belief in a long, long time.”

That belief was clearly evident with the way the Lady Mustangs played this opening round match. In each set the team built large leads and never let the Ravens get close. And they used the block to propel themselves and play with greater and greater confidence.

Grace Colburn finished with a game-high 19 kills and committed just three attack errors for a .381 hitting percentage. Ruby Duncan had eight kills and Bella Amet added seven. Kate Wagner played the entire match at setter and finished with 33 assists, Andrea Barrera was the leader of the block party with six total blocks, and Sierra Hale was once again the anchor of the back row with 14 digs.

The Master’s will now make plans for the final site in Sioux City, Iowa, where play runs from Dec. 4 to Dec. 10. The 24 teams that will be advancing to Sioux City will be divided into eight different pools of three teams each. A minimum of two games will be played in pool play, with the winners of each pool advancing to a single-elimination tournament. The quarterfinals are scheduled for Dec. 7, with the semifinals and championship scheduled for Dec. 9 and 10.

For more information visit GoMustangs.com.