KINGSVILLE, Texas (September 11, 2015) – Lubbock Christian volleyball opened Day One of the Emerald Beach Hotel-Javelina Volleyball Tournament with a split that included a 3-0 loss to Drury (21-25, 15-25, 18-25) followed by a 3-1 win over Heartland Conference member St. Mary's Friday inside the Gil H. Steinke Physical Education Center on the Kingsville Hampton Inn Court.
 
Kills by Ariel Froeschl and Kacey Deterding gave LCU (5-2, 2-0 Heartland) an initial promising start to the tournament in the match versus Drury (5-1, 0-0 GLVC), but the offensive power was short lived as the Panthers took a 7-6 set one lead. The Lady Chaps knotted the game at 17-all on a DU attack error and again at 21-21 on a kill by Froeschl, but Drury closed the set on four straight kills.
 
Nothing went LCU's way during the start of set two, as the Panthers rattled off six unanswered points and extended the lead to 12-5. The Lady Chaps pulled to within 15-11 on a kill by Christiana Tavo, but DU went on a 7-0 run to double their advantage to 22-11. LCU was only able to produce four more points the rest of the way to give the Panthers a 2-0 match edge.
 
LCU hung close in set three, even pulling ahead 9-7 on a block by Tavo and Froeschl, but the Panthers answered with a 10-2 run for a 17-11 lead. A pair of DU attack errors crept the Lady Chaps to within 17-15, but the Panthers again went on a big run to go ahead 21-15 to make their way of a 3-0 sweep in the inaugural meeting of the two programs.
 
Maddie Johnson totaled a game-high 10 kills, Powell handed out a game-high 27 assists, and Kelsie French registered a game-best 30 digs.
 
For Drury, Brooke Antenen tallied team-highs with nine kills and 24 assists.
 
In set one versus St. Mary's (2-4, 0-2 Heartland), French provided a kill by saving a ball and sending it over the net for a 9-9 tie that inspired a 7-0 LCU run and a 16-9 lead. A service ace by Kyleigh Lucia and kill by Tavo extended the score to 22-15 in which LCU took the first set.
 
The Lady Chaps fell stagnant halfway through set two, allowing St. Mary's to jump ahead 18-12 after successive Rattler blocks. A Johnson kill inched LCU to within 22-18 and Tavo pulled the team one point closer with a kill of her own, but StMU held on to tie the match at one set each.
 
A back corner kill by Emily Hanaway in set three gave the Lady Chaps a 9-5 edge, and a block by Hanaway and Deterding put LCU in front 15-9. A five-point swing by StMU tied the game at 21-all before the teams traded points for a 22-22 tie. Tavo and Froeschl teamed up for a huge block, Deterding provided a kill, and Tavo sealed the set win by sending a tip over the Rattler blockers.
 
A powerful slam by Johnson in set four gave the Lady Chaps a 10-9 edge, but LCU then fell into a 13-11 deficit. Back-to-back blocks reclaimed the lead for the Lady Chaps and Deterding kept the momentum building by powering an attack through blockers for a 19-15 lead. Kills by Froeschl and Johnson placed LCU at match point before an errant StMU hit concluded the match.
 
Johnson and Powell again each registered game highs, with 14 kills from Johnson and 48 assists by Powell. French led the team with 31 digs.
 
For St. Mary's, Tarine Grace tallied a dozen kills and Tori Estrada had 34 digs.
 
The Lady Chaps continue play in the tournament tomorrow by taking on the host Javelinas at 2:30 p.m. and Bentley at 6:30 p.m.