NAIA volleyball: NAU takes two

By Matt Nestor, Columbia Tribune | Friday, December 01, 2006

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COLUMBIA, Mo. - At times it just seemed like wave after wave of attack on the Columbia College volleyball team. National American just kept coming and coming.

But the Mavericks' offense was a byproduct of their serving and blocking. Top-seeded National American dominated an awestruck Columbia team in a 30-20, 30-18, 30-16 victory last night in the Pool A finale of the NAIA volleyball championships on the main court at the Southwell Complex.

National American served and attacked aggressively, keeping the Cougars from running their high-powered offense. Whatever chances Columbia could muster were met by a huge block that they couldn't penetrate. And when hitting around the block, the Cougars only found defenders sitting and waiting for the ball.

"They're putting up a good block," Columbia Coach Melinda Wrye-Washington said. "When they put up a good block like that, they've got two defenders digging the ball. It's going to come to one of them. There's no seam in their defense."

The Mavericks had 11.5 blocks against Columbia's four in the match.

National American (38-0) is scheduled to play at 3:30 p.m. CST in the quarterfinal round against the winner of a play-in match between Hastings and Missouri Baptist.

"It's huge, not only to avoid the play-in game, but then to get somebody that has to play that game," Coach Todd Lowery said. "Both those teams rely on a couple kids. Those kids have to take 50 swings in the morning then turn around and play us two hours later, it's a big advantage."

The tide turned for good midway through Game 1. The teams were tied at 12 - already their eighth tie - after Columbia sophomore outside hitter Rael Rotich drove a shot down the line. But then junior outside hitter Leslie DaSilva took over for the Mavericks. DaSilva's block of a Rotich shot was sandwiched between two Maria Omondi errors. DaSilva followed with a cross-court shot and a roll shot that the Cougars couldn't pick up. Columbia's Yi Zhang shanked a serve receive that Omondi pushed over the net, but Mavericks setter Juliane Viera got up and dropped it at the net. Omondi hit an attempt long in the seven-point run that broke the game open.

Columbia struggled passing and couldn't run any kind of offense. What the Mavericks didn't block became easy passes and sets for their hitters. And they came rotation after rotation. Thamy Viana led the balanced effort with 11 kills. Kellen Foganholi and DaSilva each scored 10 and Carla Demarqui collected nine. National American had 50 kills and only nine errors in 88 attempts.

Earlier on Thursday the Mavericks picked up a three-set win over King College of Tennessee winning 30-19, 30-20, 30-13.

NAU the Region III champions, took control early and left little room for error as they dominated every statistical category en route to the win.

The two teams had met earlier in the regular season with NAU winning in three straight games as well.

Leslie DaSilva a junior from Goiania Brazil, recorded 17 kills as the Mavs piled up 53 in the win. Kellen Foganholi a senior from Londrina, Brazil chipped in with 11 and Daniela Oliveira a sophomore from Campinas, Brazil added 10.

The Mavericks also played well defensively as they allowed only one King service ace and they were blocked at the net only four times over the course of the match.

Juliane Viera had 47 set assists.

The Mavs also compiled 12 service aces of their own, three solo blocks and 12 block assists.

Eight of the nine NAU players that got into the match registered at least one dig as Oliveira tallied five.