Columbia College volleyball dominates Stephens

COLUMBIA — The Columbia College volleyball team struggled in the first game against Stephens College, but rebounded to sweep their crosstown opponents, 25-22, 25-8, 25-11 Tuesday at Silverthorne Arena.

Cougars coach Melinda Wrye-Washington was upset with her team's performance after the first game. She threatened to make her players run if they didn't step their game up.

"After that, I just walked back to the bench, and they did the rest themselves," Wrye-Washington said.

The Stars said they were happy with their performance in the first game, even though they didn't win.

"The first set was outstanding," Stephens coach Shane McAfee said. "For a few minutes, I thought we could bump them."

But McAfee also said it might have done more harm than good to come so close in the first game. The Stars put all of their energy into the first game, and couldn't stay with the Cougars for the rest of the match.

Columbia College dominated the rest of the way, going on runs of 10 and nine in the final two games. The Cougars were led by the hitting of Serena Jenkins and American Midwest Conference player of the week Vesna Trivunovic.

The win moved Columbia College to 32-2 overall and 14-0 in the American Midwest Conference. The Cougars, who have already clinched the conference title, will look to go a perfect 16-0 in the AMC on Saturday. They face Williams Baptist at 12 p.m. and again at 2 p.m. at Southwell Complex.

The Stars, who fell to 19-17 and 3-11 in the AMC, return to action at 7 p.m. Thursday when they play William Woods at Silverthorne Arena.