HOUSTON, Texas - Behind the powerful arms of outside hitters Leighann Krey and Rachel Loftin, the Lady Ram volleyball team won the first semi-final match in the Red River Athletic Conference post-season tournament on Friday evening, defeating College of the Southwest in three games.

Krey led the Wesleyan attack with 12 kills and an outstanding .588 hitting percentage in the 30-24, 30-20, 30-15 victory. She also had 7 digs, 4 total blocks, and an ace. Loftin also stepped up with 12 kills, a .429 hitting percentage, and 6 total blocks. Cortney Johansen tossed up 42 assists for an average of 14 per game, and Susan Taylor led the squad with 20 digs. Other standout performances include Tiffany Porterfield (9 kills, 5 blocks), Katherine Williams (8 kills, 12 digs, 1 ace), and Nicky Davis (6 kills, 5 blocks, 1 ace).

For College of the Southwest, Allison Foss produced 15 kills and Tricia Cullry had 7. Lizzy Rains led with 23 assists, and Allysa Salazar Austin had 8 digs. Kendra Cox served up the only ace for the overmatched Lady Mustangs.

“We knew going in that we were going to match up favorably against our first opponent,” said head coach Rick Johansen, who was unsure of their opponent until College of the Southwest defeated Jarvis Christian earlier in the day. “I don’t really think we’re surprised to be here. We won all of our regular season matches in straight games against both schools, so the only thing that might have gotten us into trouble was looking ahead to the finals. Fortunately, the girls were able to stay focused tonight.”

Wesleyan advances to the final match, where they will face Houston Baptist University. The Lady Huskies, who defeated UT-Permian Basin in three games in the other semi-final match, is the host of this year’s tournament and the fifth-ranked NAIA team in the country. They are also the only participant in this year’s tournament that Wesleyan did not defeat during the regular season. Led by outside hitter Elele Ekadeli, a first-team All-American and member of the Kenyan National Team, the Lady Huskies downed the Lady Rams 3-1 on October 25 in Fort Worth.

“Houston Baptist will be tough, no doubt about it,” said Johansen. “They’re a great team, especially on their home court where they’ve only lost three games all season. We’ll definitely have our hands full, but we did win a game against them a few weeks ago. If you can win one, you can win three.”

Red River Athletic Conference Tournament final match:
Saturday, November 16 at 1:00 PM, Sharp Gymnasium (Houston Baptist University)
Texas Wesleyan (21-10, 14-3) vs. Houston Baptist (38-2, 17-0)

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