The St. Edward’s University volleyball team went 2-1 in the SEU Volleyball Classic this past weekend, losing out to Abilene Christian University in their final match of the tournament.

The Hilltoppers (4-3) won both of their matches on the first day of play, sweeping Northwest Missouri State and Missouri Southern in three sets.

“The team played well, and the tournament really allowed us to see exactly where we fit into the region because all the teams that were there were regional teams,” Hilltopper head coach Sean Donahue said.

In the Hilltoppers’ first match against Northwest Missouri State, senior Pam Osborn and sophomore Ale’tra Ware each registered 10 kills, and junior Whitney Rhoden finished the match with 15 kills.

“My mindset was to just go out there and be whatever tool my team needed me to be to the best of my abilities,” Ware said.

Defensively, sophomore Michelle Hundt led the Hilltoppers with 21 digs.

St. Edward’s continued their dominance in their second match of the day over Missouri Southern, sweeping the Lions in three consecutive sets.

In this match, Ware again had 10 kills, and junior Ashley Vander Hey led the Hilltoppers with 13 digs.

“I thought we were very consistent during our first day of play,” senior Stacie Robertson said.  

On the second day of the tournament, St. Edward’s fell to Abilene Christian in four sets, 16-25, 18-25, 25-23, and 16-25.

The Hilltoppers were down in the first two sets, unable to gain the lead in either set. In the third set, St. Edward’s came out strong, getting an early 10-6 lead. The Wildcats were not able to answer back, and the Hilltoppers held on for the win. In the fourth set, St. Edward’s  was not able to gain the lead at any point, eventually falling to the Wildcats 25-16.

“After the first two matches, we didn’t prepare ourselves enough for the next day of play,” Robertson said.

Ware said that she was not pleased with the team’s play on Saturday, but she was happy with the team that she saw Friday. She believes her team showed no fear in the first two matches of the tournament.

“In this tournament, we were simply focused on our side of the net,” Ware said. “We did a lot of blocking drills, serve-receiving drills, and we also worked on hitting different spots on the court.”

Robertson and Ware both agree that missed serves were the biggest weakness in the tournament this weekend. However, Robertson said that missed serves are individual problems that need to be worked on, and that they aren’t necessarily team issues.  

“In the next match, we need to remember that no opponent can beat us unless we let them, and we need to trust ourselves and our teammates,” Ware said.

Donahue said that the level of competition was very high in this tournament, and UT-Permian Basin is right around the level of competition seen in the tournament.

The Hilltoppers will battle the UT-Permian Basin Falcons on Thursday, Sept. 16 at the Recreation and Convocation Center in their first Heartland Conference game of the 2010 season.