HANCEVILLE, Ala., November 2, 2018 – The Monroe College Mustangs women's volleyball team turned heads in their first day at the District L/M Championships, coming away with back-to-back victories over Coastal Alabama Community College – Bay Minette and Gadsden State Community College to advance through the winner's bracket of the three-day, six-team tournament. The Mustangs come away with a 16-9 overall record with their two wins.
 
MATCH 1: Monroe 3, Coastal Alabama 2 (25-17, 22-25, 25-20, 26-28, 15-10)
The Mustangs opened up tournament play with a thriller on Friday, needing five frames to take down the Sun Chiefs from Coastal Alabama. The Sun Chiefs opened the first set with a 3-0 lead, but the Mustangs quickly erased the deficit and kept things neck-and-neck, eventually reaching a 10-10 tie. The Mustangs took over from there, rolling out to a 16-11 edge. The Sun Chiefs never got closer than two points from there, as Monroe took a 1-0 lead with a 25-17 win.
 
The Mustangs looked to have all the momentum when they started the second set with a 4-0 lead. Much like the Mustangs in the first set, the Sun Chiefs turned things around to tie it up at 13-13, but Monroe was able to pick up the next three to keep the lead. After an 18-18 stalemate, the Sun Chiefs closed things out with a 25-22 win to tie the match up.
 
The third set was completely back-and-forth throughout, even reaching a 19-19 stalemate after a number of ties throughout the frame. The Mustangs were then able to take five of the final six points in the game, claiming a 25-20 win to go up, 2-1.
 
The Sun Chiefs rolled to a 5-0 lead to open the fourth frame, eventually pushing the lead to 8-1. After a steady push, the Mustangs managed to finally tie things up at 18-18. Things went back-and-forth from there, as the set reached a 25-25 score and needed extra points. After being knotted up at 26-26, the Sun Chiefs took two straight points, picking up a 28-26 win to force the decisive fifth set.
 
A back-and-forth start saw the final game reach a 4-4 tie. The Mustangs then rattled off four in a row to take an 8-4 lead as the teams switched sides of the court. Coastal Alabama got two back, but the Mustangs then scored three in a row to go up, 11-6. Another two for the Sun Chiefs made it an 11-8 game, but Monroe earned match point with another three in a row. Coastal Alabama picked up two more points, but a kill by Tereza Strnadlova closed things out with a 15-10 win.
 
Maria Camila Salazar led the way with 25 kills in the win. Karla Figueroa had 13 kills, four aces, three blocks and 17 digs in the win. Giulia La Longa added 10 kills and a pair of blocks. Maryorie Cruz Baez dished out a team-high 34 assists. Nashally Eleutiza picked up 32 digs.
 
MATCH 2: Monroe 3, Gadsden State 0
The Mustangs used the momentum from their thrilling victory to open the day to roll to a three-set win over Gadsden State. The Mustangs looked tired to open the match against a fresh Gadsden State team playing its first match of the day, falling behind to the Cardinals, 8-1. After the Cardinals took a 10-3 lead, the Mustangs called timeout, and the rest proved to be worthwhile, leading to a 6-1 run for Monroe to cut the deficit to two. Later in the frame, a four-point run for Monroe gave the Mustangs a 16-14 edge, but the Cardinals scored the next four to go back up, 18-16. Things were tied up at 24-24 before back-to-back kills by Strnadlova and Salazar earned the Mustangs a comeback 26-24 win.
 
The Mustangs came out with new energy in the second set, galloping out to a 9-2 advantage and eventually pushing the lead to 13-3. The Cardinals then rallied for six in a row to get within four, but a Mustang timeout once again turned the tables. Monroe responded with seven straight points to take a commanding 20-10 lead, eventually closing things out with a 25-13 win for a 2-0 lead in the match.
 
The Cardinals took the early edge in the third stanza, but the Mustangs quickly tied it up at 6-6. The two teams traded runs, eventually leading to a 12-12 stalemate. The Cardinals held a 19-16 lead before Monroe took 6-of-7 to go ahead, 22-20. A timeout helped the Cardinals break Monroe's rhythm, leading to two straight points and a 22-22 draw late in the frame. The Mustangs then earned the final three points of the day, closing out the match with a 3-0 win to continue on through the winner's bracket.
 
Salazar led the way once again, this time with 13 kills and three blocks in the win. La Longa was close behind, scoring 11 kills with an impressive .526 hitting percentage. Julia Alves matched Salazar with a team-high three blocks. Cruz Baez handed out 19 assists and served up a team-best three aces, while Daline Rios added 17 assists. Eleutiza led with 20 digs.
 
As the only team with two wins so far in the tournament, the Mustangs are ahead of the curve heading into the second day of the District L/M Championships. They will play just one match on Saturday, facing off with the Match 3 winner, tournament host Wallace State Community College-Hanceville, for the first spot in the Championship Match. The match is scheduled to begin at 1 p.m. EST.
 
ABOUT THE ATHLETIC PROGRAM AT MONROE COLLEGE
The athletic program at Monroe College encompasses a total of 27 teams competing across nine sports. There are 18 varsity and junior varsity programs, as well as club men's and women's rugby, competing on the New Rochelle campus as the Monroe Mustangs (NJCAA Division I). The Monroe Express, based out of the Bronx campus as of the fall of 2017, has seven teams competing at the NJCAA Division III level.
 
For more information about the Monroe Mustangs, please visit us at www.MonroeCollegeMustangs.com or follow us on social media: Facebook (Monroe College Athletics), Twitter (@Monroe_Mustangs) and Instagram (@monroemustangs).