TUCSON, Ariz. — Leaving no doubt Sunday afternoon, the Texas A&M-Corpus Christi volleyball team powered past Alabama State in straight sets, 25-9, 25-20, 25-19, to close the weekend on a high note at the Wildcat Classic inside McKale Center.
It marks the first win of the season for the Islanders (1-2), who opened the match with complete control in the first set. Senior
Alessia Gallo dropped in a service ace for an 8-5 advantage and after Alabama State (0-3) was able to get a point back, the next nine rallies all went A&M-Corpus Christi's way as sophomore
Hadley Burger laid down a couple kills in the effort to go up 17-6. The Hornets burned through their timeouts, but the Islanders never slowed as Burger and sophomore
Virginia Van Der Werff each knocked down a kill and junior
Kenna Buchanan fired an ace to make it 21-9. Freshman
Tatum Mason subbed in on set point and sealed it with an ace to finish the dominant 25-9 opener.
The second set was more of a battle, with the teams trading ties through the early stages. Freshman
Erin Herrmann's kill evened it at 2-2, and Van Der Werff followed with an ace for a 3-2 edge. The Hornets clawed back, but Burger and senior
Kaitlyn Baumann steadied the Islanders' attack, and Hermann got another down for a 10-8 cushion. The set would even again and with the score knotted at 17, a couple of Alabama State errors created enough of a go-ahead for the Islanders to pull away. They kept the Hornets off balance in the closing stretch, as Baumann got A&M-Corpus Christi to set point with the clean swing before another Alabama State error made it a 2-0 Islanders advantage in the match.
In the third, A&M-Corpus Christi's balance across the front row proved decisive. Buchanan got it started and then
Logan Dyer checked in to make an immediate impact, scoring on two quick kills. Alabama State tied it at 10-10, but Buchanan put the Islanders back in front with a kill and senior
Katelyn Krienke followed with another to keep a 13-12 edge. The Hornets stayed within two through an 18-16 score, but freshman
Kenrie Pruitt delivered a timely ace to extend the margin to20-16, and the Islanders rolled through the finish as Dyer closed it out emphatically with her fifth kill of the set, delivering the 25-19 win and completing the sweep.
The Islanders finished with a .373 hitting percentage, paced by Burger's errorless performance at the net with eight kills at a .727 efficiency. Krienke and Baumann combined for 10 kills and four blocks, while Dyer's late spark off the bench ended with five kills also errorless. Defensively, Jaeger anchored the back row with 15 digs as A&M-Corpus Christi held Alabama State to just a .112 hitting mark including a -.024 clip in the first set.
The sweep marked the Islanders' first win of the 2025 season and provided momentum heading into the Southwest Showdown where they will face UTEP and Texas State on Thursday and Friday, respectively.
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