Ravens take first at Longview Tourney; defeat NOC-Enid

Veni, vidi, vinci could aptly describe the Ravens performance at the Longview Tournament on October 5-6.  Without the use of Latin, the Ravens simply turned in an outstanding performance and took first place, winning six games over the course of the weekend.

"We played the best volleyball all weekend long, not one person had a bad day," said head volleyball coach Delice Downing. 

Tagata Fo'a was named MVP of the tournament. "(Tagata) is a jewel to have on any team," said Downing.  "If everyone would have her heart, then we would be undefeated."

Morgan Wyatt was named to the All-Tournament Team, receiving three votes from the coaches at the tournament.  "Morgan always plays solid," said Downing.  "She may only be 5'8" right side, but she explodes on the ball like she is six-foot tall.  I just love her intensity."

Jessica Seichepine led the team during the tournament in kills and digs.  "Her great attitude and love for the game makes her one of the best outsides I have seen," said Downing.

The Ravens began the tournament by defeating the William Woods JV 30-25 and 30-17.  Seichepine led the team with 11 kills with just one error out of 20 attempts.  Seichepine also had 11 digs.  Victoria Thomas also had seven kills and no errors out of 12 chances.  Fo'a had 17 assists to lead the Ravens. 

The Ravens then played Hesston and ran into their toughest match of the tournament.  The Ravens defeated the Larks 30-27 in the first game, but Hesston came back to win the second game 33-31.  The Ravens won the tie-breaking game 15-7 to stay undefeated.

Fo'a had 30 assists in three games and Seichepine had a team-high 11 kills.  Thomas and Wyatt had eight kills each.  Libero Jessica Giesen had 14 digs and Wyatt had a team-high 15 digs.  Katy Bowen just missed double-figures with nine digs.

"Katy always plays solid in the middle of our offense," said Downing, "and defense is what keeps her going."

The Ravens completed first day play by ripping Florissant Valley 30-20 and 30-12.  In two games, Fo'a had 28 assists and one ace.  Seichepine had a team-high 12 kills and one error on 17 attempts.  Giesen added eight digs.

On Saturday, the Ravens began bracket play as a top seed and played East Central College.  The Ravens won the match in two games, 30-24 and 30-16.  Seichepine had another great hitting game with 13 kills and Wyatt added eight kills.  Fo'a had 25 assists.

With the win, the Ravens advanced to the tournament semi-finals and faced Longview, the #11 ranked team in the country.  The Ravens won a nail-biter in the first game 30-28 before winning the second game more comfortably at 30-24.  Fo'a had 28 assists to lead the Ravens.  Bowen had a double-double with 14 digs and 13 kills in addition to a serving ace.  Seichepine recorded 16 digs and nine kills.

In the tournament championship game, the Ravens faced Hesston for the second time in the tournament.  The result was the same as the previous day - a Ravens win.  The Ravens defeated the Larks in two games by identical 30-24 scores.  Seichepine had 10 digs and 12 kills out of 24 attempts with just one error.  Thomas had seven kills out of 13 attempts with two aces and one block.

The Ravens didn't rest for long after winning the championship game at the Longview Tournament, returning to action on Monday night at Northern Oklahoma College-Enid.  The Ravens dropped the first game 29-31 before taking three straight: 30-16, 30-26, and 30-22.

Fo'a had a team-high 47 assists and seven serving aces.  Giesen and Bowen had 11 digs each and Bowen also had 11 blocks and 14 kills.  Wyatt recorded 16 kills, nine digs and two blocks.  Seichepine had 13 kills, eight digs and three solo blocks.  Thomas added 10 kills and four blocks.

The Ravens are now 25-9 overall on the season, just five wins behind the all-time school record of 30.  The Ravens are back in action on Wednesday, October 10, when they host Neosho County at 6:30 p.m. in Nellis Hall.  The Ravens will stay busy the next few days, traveling to Olathe on October 11 to face Mid America Nazarene JV before venturing on to Des Moines, Iowa for the DMACC Tournament on October 12-13.