Seward County defeats Eastern Arizona 3-0 in the Consolation Bracket NJCAA Tournament

WEST PLAINS, Mo. - Seward County Community College bounces back on day two of the NJCAA National Tournament with a 3-0 sweep over Eastern Arizona College in the consolation bracket. The Lady Saints defeated the Monsters with set scores 25-15, 26-24, and 25-22 on Friday morning. With the victory, Seward County advances to the semifinals of the consolation bracket and will face No. 10 New Mexico Military Institute at 4:30 p.m. CT. 

Seyun Park led the lady Saints to victory with a career-high 23 kills and a .821 hitting percentage on 28 total attempts. Sarah Cruz had 11 kills, and the setter Rafaela DaSilva had 41 assists in the three-set match. 

The Lady Saints started off strong with an early 8-4 lead after a kill by Sarah Cruz. As Seward County continued to separate themselves from Eastern Arizona after a kill by Aubreigh Haxton gave the Lady Saints a 17-9 advantage. A block at the net by Kavlyn Giacomelli and Ana Cambraia gave the Lady Saints a 25-15 first-set victory and took a 1-0 match lead. Seward County had a .542 hitting percentage in the opening set with 15 kills. 

The second set was a battle as both teams traded off points early and a kill by Cruz gave Seward County a 9-7 advantage. The Lady Saints trailed 17-15 to the Monsters, took a timeout to regroup, and came out to cut the lead down to 1, 21-20. This set when into extra points as Seward County claimed the second set 26-24 and took a 2-0 lead over Eastern Arizona. The Lady Saints had 19 kills and a .317 hitting percentage in the second set. 

Like the second set, the Monsters came out looking to get back into the match and traded off points with the Lady Saints. A Haxton kill tied the match at 9-9, and the Lady Saints again looked to fight back from a deficit. Seward County used a timeout as Eastern Arizona led 19-17 late in the third set. After the timeout, the Lady Saints went on a 5-2 run to take the lead 22-21, and the Monsters called timeout. Seward County closed the match with Park's 23rd kill as the Lady Saints won 25-22 to sweep Eastern Arizona. 

The Lady Saints advance to the semifinals of the consolation bracket and will face the Broncos at 4:30 p.m. in the West Plains Civic Center.