San Jac volleyball sweeps defending national champion Iowa Western

Amanda Booren - 11/16/2007

COUNCIL BLUFFS, Iowa - After playing back-to-back five-game matches in the opening round on Thursday, the San Jacinto College volleyball team bounced back with a sweep (30-27, 30-21, 30-24) of defending national champion Iowa Western, Friday afternoon in second-round action of the National Junior College Athletic Association (NJCAA) tournament at the Mid-America Center.

In front of a raucous Iowa Western home crowd, San Jac held their own behind the solid play of sophomore middle blocker Lindsey Schindler and freshmen outside hitters Julia Teixeira and Bruna Rocha. Schindler needed just three blocks heading into today's match to break the San Jac all-time record of 194. She did that in game two, and now owns the record with 198 total blocks.

Teixeira and Rocha combined for 33 of San Jac's 54 kills on the afternoon. The pair hit .382 and .257, respectively, to lead San Jac to its 30th win of the season. Rocha also added 10 digs for a double-double.

“When we click, it's fun to see what happens,” noted sixth-year head coach Sharon Nelson. “This was great to beat the defending national champs on their own home court.” Nelson was also named the District M Coach of the Year at an awards ceremony and banquet held Wednesday night.

San Jac will next play in-state rival Blinn College for fifth-place. The match is slated to begin at 3 p.m. on Saturday. To follow all of the volleyball action at the NJCAA national tournament, visit http://www.njcaavb.com/.