WEST PALM BEACH, Fla. - The 2021 volleyball season opened with strong performances against two top-25 teams Thursday in the Palm Beach County Sports Commission Volleyball Classic. Despite going 0-2 with a 3-0 (25-19, 25-16, 25-23) loss to the host Keiser and a 3-1 (25-21, 28-26, 25-13, 25-20) loss to No. 24 Bethel (Ind.), Faulkner has plenty to be proud of and use moving forward.
The day marked the first time since the 2018 NAIA Volleyball Opening Round against No. 25 Marian (Ind.) that the Lady Eagles played a team appearing in the national polls. About 30 minutes after a first match loss, Faulkner took the first set against the Pilots to claim the first set against a top-25 foe since Oct. 10, 2015 when it grabbed the third set against No. 10 Columbia (Mo.).
Keiser 3, Faulkner 0
Despite dominating on the block, untimely errors were the difference in the season opener as a 10 a.m. local time first serve opened the season for both teams on the newly-designed Massimino Court. Keiser opened to a 16-8 lead, but the Lady Eagles stormed back with a 10-2 run to bring the Seahawk advantage just two when a service error started a 7-3 closeout stretch by the home team.
With a 10-9 advantage in set two, Keiser rattled off their own 10-2 run to push the second set out of reach, but it did not knock out the spirited Lady Eagles. Trailing 12-10 in the third frame, it was Faulkner's turn to take advantage of the free service gift starting a 6-0 run. The set appeared to be in Faulkner's control, leading 21-15, but the Seahawks, who entered the day having not lost a match at home since 2019, proved why they're in the national polls. After a Faulkner service error, Keiser took a 23-21 lead that they would not surrender despite the Lady Eagles twice bringing it to a one-point spread.
In her first match as libero,
Alysa Vinson led the floor with 18 digs.
Alyssa Stagner led the team with 12 assists.
Alexis McInroy's six kills paced the balanced attack that saw six Lady Eagles record multiple kills.
Bethel (Ind.) 3, Faulkner 1
Unfazed by the earlier loss and another top-tier opponent across the net, Faulkner used a five-point run with two aces from Vinson and kills from
Hannah Bryan and
Haven Owings to flip a two-point deficit to a lead it would not surrender for the remainder of the set. The Lady Eagles maintained a fairly clean set while the Pilots served seven errors.
Faulkner rode that momentum to a 5-0 second set lead before the Pilots drew level at 11. An attack error on set point at 24-23 gave the Pilots a chance to pull the match level. The Lady Eagles fended off two Pilot set points before falling 28-26.
Bethel took an early lead and never looked back in the third, leading by as many as 11 points. In the fourth set, a furious rally fell just short of extending the match to five. Down 23-11 to the No. 24 team in the country, the Lady Eagles proved resilient as
Julia Rice served aces on three of four consecutive points in a eight-point run. However, Madyson Beaver became the third Pilot with double-digit kills to end the match three points later.
In a game characterized by aces, Faulkner served 16 of their own with Rice and Vinson leading the way with six a piece. McInroy and Owings paced the attack with nine and eight kills, respectively.
Macy Kemper led the team with 10 digs and Stagner recorded a team-high 16 assists.
The Lady Eagles take on Goshen (Ind.) and Life Pacific (Calif.) to wrap up the Classic Friday. First serves are scheduled for 3 p.m. and 7 p.m. central.
