Brenham, TX – The Monroe College volleyball team spent last weekend in Brenham, Texas competing against some of the nation's top teams at the Blinn College Invitational. The Mustangs posted a 3-2 mark in five matches, including a five-set win over Tyler Junior College, ranked #7 in the NJCAA polls.
It was a homecoming of sorts for Monroe sophomore
Cristen Coryatt, who hails from Sugar Land, Texas. In fact, Coryatt's friends and family made the drive to Brenham to watch Monroe compete.
The opening match saw Blinn defeat the Mustangs 3-1, with set scores of 22-25, 25-21, 25-17, and 25-22. Despite Monroe's loss, Coryatt played admirably for her friends and family, posting a double-double with 15 kills and 14 digs.
Neysha Gonzalez added 23 digs in the match.
The second game of the tournament pitted Monroe against Polk State, who won 3-0. Coryatt led the Mustangs with eight kills in the match, while
Kathrin Pasel and Gonzalez each collected eight digs.
Monroe's fortunes turned from there, and the team won its next three matches. The first victory came over #7 Tyler Junior College in a five-set grinder. The scores were 25-23, 20-25, 16-25, 25-17, and 15-6.
Carla Soufront posted a double-double for Monroe, accumulating 37 assists to go along with 11 digs. Coryatt was just one dig shy of another double-double.
The second win came against Frank Phillips College with a score of 3-1. The sets went 25-14, 25-22, 23-25, and 25-20. Pasel and Coryatt netted double-doubles, but most impressive of all was Soufront, who posted a season-best 47 assists. She also chipped in ten digs.
The final match of the tournament saw Monroe defeat #16 Hill College, 3-1. The Mustangs lost the first set 25-15, but rebounded by scores of 25-18, 25-19, and 25-15.
Rachel Johnson had five solo blocks in the win. Coryatt totaled 18 kills and 13 digs.
Coach
Nephtali Delgado Reyes summed up the experience, saying, "This weekend gave us the opportunity to play against high-level competition and see how far we've come as a team. I was happy with the results." He added, "I look forward to finally getting home to show our fans how good the team can be."
The Monroe College volleyball team will host several other schools in the Monroe College Invitational starting on Friday, September 16. The Mustangs will play their first game against Potomac State College at 3:00 PM.
