Paced by excellent work at the net by Irene Ojukwu, Marija Zelenovic and Nicole Sumida, the Lady Flames bounced back from a 3-2 loss to Indiana Wesleyan and coasted past Xavier University (La.) 3-0 in the final match of Friday's Lee Invitational.
As a team, the Lady Flames had a blistering .506 hitting percentage, while Ojukwu was credited with 16 kills and a .667 percentage. Zelenovic followed with 13 kills and a .524 mark and freshman Sumida joined the fun with nine kills (.636).
A share of the credit in the 25-14, 25-16, 25-16 victory must go to setters Paula Martins (21 assists) and Becky Bourne (21 assists). Martins also added five kills. Lauren Williams countered with three aces in limited playing time, while Zelenovic added six digs.
Taylor Reuther and Chinedu Echebelem notched six kills apiece for the losers.
The Lady Flames will return to action on Saturday at 11 a.m. and will face Olivet Nazarene (Ill.). They will close out the two-day event later in the day (5 p.m.) when they battle 20th-ranked Lindsey Wilson College.
INDIANA WESLEYAN 3, LEE 2
Indiana Wesleyan came battling back from a 2-1 deficit to upset the host and third-ranked Lady Flames 3-2 in the first day of play in the annual Lee University Volleyball Invitational.
It was the second win of the day for the Wildcats who had whipped Olivet Nazarene 3-1 earlier on Friday. The Lady Flames will get an opportunity to rebound later this evening when they will be pitted against Xavier (New Orleans). Xavier lost a 3-0 match to Lindsey Wilson earlier.
The Wildcat got out of the gate quickly and pinned a 25-22 win over the Lady Flames in the first set. Lee fought back and appeared ready to take control after winning the next two sets 25-21, 25-17. However, the visitors were not about to back away and evened the match with a 25-17 decision.
The final set rocked back and forth before IWU tallied the final three points and claimed the 15-13 set and claimed the win. The Wildcats will have a few hours to relax and celebrate the upset. They will return to Invitation play on Saturday and will test Union College (Ky.) and talented Lindsey Wilson College.
The Lady Flames were paced by junior middle blocker Irene Ojukwu who had 20 kills and 16 digs. Marija Zelenovic followed closely with 16 slams and nine digs. Libby Peigen came away with 20 digs and Sarah Davis added 11.
Newcomer Camil Martinez made her presence felt with 52 assists, six kills and five blocks. Another new member of the Lee club, Paula Martins, joined in with seven kills and six blocks.
Indiana Wesleyan countered with four players in double-figure kills. Alijah Mulitauppele paved the way with 17 blasts. Next came Rae Brandes with 12, while Cheyenne Godinez registered 11 and Kristine Egebrecht totaled 10.
Rebecca Brandes also chipped in with 20 digs and Rae Brandes did her part with 17. Yui Iwase played a key role for the winners with 49 assists and 12 digs.
