Sioux City, Iowa - The Columbia College volleyball team won its first match of the NAIA National Tournament on Tuesday by a score of 25-22, 25-11, 23-25, 25-15 over the University of Mobile (Ala.)
The Cougars, with an overall record of 40-3, are in pool play at the 24-team tournament at the Tyson Events Center. Each pool is divided into four teams, and after three matches, the top two teams from each pool will advance to the single-elimination playoff round beginning Friday.
Flavia Lino led the Cougars with 21 kills. Luana Branco had 10 kills, 41 assists and five digs. Tally Mattos added 28 digs.
“It took us a while to get going,” said Cougars coach Melinda Wrye-Washington. “It wasn’t as close as the score indicated in the first set. We let them score three or four points there at the end, but we were pretty dominant once we got going. Flavia did a nice job; all the girls did a nice job. We had decent ball control, and Tally played unbelievable.”
Columbia College will play Dordt College (Iowa) at 11 a.m. Wednesday. They finish pool play against Azusa Pacific (Calif.) at 1:15 p.m. Thursday.