Lady Lions Volleyball wins two weekend games

Waxahachie, TX – September 19, 2011 – Southwestern Assemblies of God University (SAGU) Lady Lions volleyball won 3-2 against John Brown University (JBU) on Friday, September 16 and swept Oklahoma Wesleyan University (OKWU), 3-0, Saturday, September 17.

SAGU lost the first game, 14-25, then won two consecutive 25-23 battles. John Brown took the fourth, 25-21, and still had momentum when the Lions scored eight of the final ten points. SAGU scored the game’s final three points to win the set, 17-15.

The Lady Lions won thanks to a defense that forced JBU into 32 hitting errors, even though SAGU was outhit .185 to .144. Six players earned double-figures in digs, led by senior Laura Espinoza (Duncanville, TX) with 28.

Freshman Jessica Sodich (Ovilla, TX) had a huge performance with 17 kills and hit a team-best of .222. Senior Krystal Cisneros (El Paso, TX) had 13 kills with just three errors, hit .217, and had a total of seven blocks at the net. Sophomore Brittany Briggs (Maypearl, TX) had 17 digs. Taylor Calverley (Mansfield, TX) had 48 assists and 13 digs. Junior Caitlyn Hudson (Mansfield, TX) and senior Tina Brown (New Braunfels, TX) had three and two aces respectively.

It was SAGU’s first-ever defeat of JBU, who entered the match with a 10-4 record. The Eagles swept the Lions in 2008 and 2010.

On Saturday, SAGU dismantled the Eagles (OKWU) with solid defensive play, taking all three games in the best-of-five match with scores of 25-15, 25-17 and 25-19. The Lady Lions evened their ledger at 7-7 in their final tune-up prior to the start of league play in the Red River Athletic Conference. OKWU fell 10-7.

SAGU blocked eight shots at the net and racked up a 52-43 edge in digs over the Eagles, who were held to minus .049 hitting. Meanwhile, the Purple Pride hit .219, led by Cisneros. She was second in kills with seven as she hit a match-high .400. She had two of the team’s three solo blocks.

Hudson, an outside hitter, had 10 kills. She hit .259 in the process. It was her fifth double-digit match in kills, and third in the past five contests. Hudson led the team with 11 digs. Brown and Espinoza were credited with 10 digs each. Calverley had 26 assists and six digs, as did Sodich. Devan Guynes (Red Oak, TX) added five digs.

Contact: Sports Information Director Mark “Link” Warde at This e-mail address is being protected from spambots. You need JavaScript enabled to view it.  or at 469-658-2847.