No. 12 Blinn College volleyball remained undefeated with a 25-16, 21-25, 25-16, 25-15 victory over Eastern Florida State College on day one of the Kruse Kickoff Classic on Thursday at the Kruse Center in Brenham, Texas.
The Buccaneers improved to 6-0 on the season with the victory, overcoming a second-set setback by dominating the final two sets.
"We followed the game plan and served it pretty tough in the first set, and we started getting some offense going," Blinn head coach Gregg Whitis said. "We had some hitting errors in the second set, especially early on, and we dug ourselves a hole. We fought back in the second set and gave ourselves a chance, but Eastern Florida found a way."
"I was really proud of how we responded, though, and how we really controlled the third and fourth sets. From the beginning of each set, we were in command. Our service game was really good, especially with Skylar Herring going on a big service run."
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Blinn hit .248 for the match and saved its best for the fourth set, when the Bucs recorded 20 kills against just two hitting errors while hitting .529.
"You become impossible to beat when you get that many kills in a set," Whitis said. "We've shown that we're capable of doing that, but it was nice to see us do it against a quality opponent."
McKynzee Beddes led the Bucs with 12 kills, while Aliyah Harris and Kassandra De La Garza added 11 apiece. Nevaeh English finished with nine.
The performance marked the first time this season Blinn had three players record at least 10 kills in the same match.
"What the hitters did tonight was a product of our setters getting better, and if we can improve our setting choices and get a little better at location, we're going to be hard to beat."
Whitis also had high praise for his attackers, including Beddes.
"Beddes is doing all of it out there," Whitis explained. "She plays every rotation, she's handling serve receive, she's scoring for us, and she's just so steady."
Herring, a freshman setter, recorded a team-high 24 assists, while freshman setter Valerie Yambao added 16.
The Bucs also put pressure on Eastern Florida from the service line, recording 14 aces. Beddes and freshman hitter Karolynn Youngblood led Blinn with three aces apiece, while Herring, sophomore libero/defensive specialist Natalia Silva, and freshman middle blocker Sophia Green each had two.
Silva led the Bucs defensively with 17 digs, while Youngblood added 10.
Blinn totaled nine blocks, including three solo blocks and 12 block assists. Sophomore middle blocker Alana Asante led the Bucs with two solos and three assists. De La Garza, English and freshman middle blocker London King each recorded three block assists.
The Bucs opened the match by overcoming an early 3-0 deficit. An Eastern Florida service error, followed by kills from English and Harris, pulled Blinn even. Harris added another kill to give the Bucs a 5-4 lead, and Blinn never trailed again.
Blinn extended its advantage throughout the set before an Eastern Florida service error ended it at 25-16.
"It all comes down to preparation," Beddes said. "Coach Whitis is really big on preparation in practice. He makes practice just as hard — if not harder — than the games. We had a lot of energy and worked as a team, so it was a lot of fun tonight."
The Titans responded in the second set, jumping out to a 6-1 lead. Blinn battled back and eventually tied things up at 20-20, but Eastern Florida closed out the set to even the match.
The Bucs quickly regained control in the third set, opening a 3-0 lead and building a 10-point advantage at 17-7 following a double block from Asante and De La Garza.
Eastern Florida cut into the deficit late, but De La Garza answered with a kill before Beddes finished the set with an ace to give Blinn a 2-1 lead.
Blinn never trailed in the fourth set.
Kills from Beddes and English opened the scoring, and after the teams traded points early, the Bucs turned an 8-7 lead into an 18-9 advantage with a 10-2 move.
Eastern Florida cut the deficit to seven at 20-13 with an ace, but Blinn closed the match behind a 5-2 spurt. Beddes recorded a kill to put the Bucs on the brink of victory before Herring sealed the match with an ace.
"Eastern Florida was definitely strong competition," Harris said. "We hadn't played a team with that level of arms and a big block up front. They're an all-around great team. Overall, it was a clean game on all ends. Our setters and passers distributing the ball the way they're supposed to is what sets us up for success, so it all starts with them."
Whitis also credited the Bucs' depth for helping them regain control after the second set.
"I'm happy with the team," Whitis said. "We had some kids come in late in the second set and help us fight back a bit. Akira Smallwood went in for us and steadied things out as a server and receiver. Sophia Green went in there and served tough and made some good plays on defense. Karolynn Youngblood is learning and improving, and Kansas Lamar went in and gave us a good turn through the front row."
Blinn continues the Kruse Kickoff Classic on Friday with a match against No. 15 Indian Hills Community College at 11 a.m. and a showdown with 2025 NJCAA Division I national runner-up Florida SouthWestern State College at 5 p.m.
