Ashley Plassard

Erica Roberts

The College of Wooster volleyball team broke a North Coast Athletic Conference record during a 2-0 day on Friday to kick-start the 2017 season before ending the weekend splitting a total of four matches at the 2017 University of Mount Union Invitational at Alliance, Ohio.

Led by senior Ksenia Klue, who was named to the all-tournament team behind three double-doubles and 3.25 kills per set on the weekend, Wooster (2-2) opened its season with a convincing 25-22, 25-17, 25-19 sweep over Alma College on Friday. Wooster's hitters took charge in the "Battle of the Scots" as Klue and sophomore Erica Roberts combined for 17 kills on 45 attempts. Sophomore Anna Medema backed that up with seven kills, and for the match, Wooster started the season with a red-hot .274 attack percentage. Defensively, three of Wooster's Scots finished with double-digit digs in junior Gabrielle Basinski (13), senior Taylor Mathews (11), and Klue (10). In fact, Mathews opened the campaign with a double-double with 27 assists, and the crafty setter found the floor on Alma's side of the net four times in the kill column.

In Friday's nightcap, Wooster rebounded from dropping the opening set of the Grove City College match 26-24 to win the next three – 25-20, 30-28, 30-28. Of note, the 109 points scored by Wooster in the match broke the NCAC record for the most points scored in a four-set match in the current scoring format that previously stood at 103 points scored by Hiram College during its four-set win over Ohio Wesleyan University on Sept. 27, 2008.

Against the Wolverines, both of Wooster's senior captains notched double-doubles in 45 assists and 10 digs by Mathews, while Klue notched a career-high in digs (21) to pair with 16 kills. Other noteworthy efforts featured 10 kills and two blocks by junior Marija Cyvas and a combined 25 digs between juniors Jordan Murray and McKenzie Reese.

In Saturday's opener, Wooster won the first and third sets against the State University of New York at Geneseo, but the Scots couldn't pierce the Knights' armor in the fourth or fifth sets as Geneseo rallied to win 13-25, 25-18, 20-25, 25-15, 17-15.

Likewise to Friday's nightcap, Klue and Mathews both notched double-doubles in the match with the former recording an identical tally of 15 kills and 15 digs and the latter distributing twice as many assists (28) as digs (14). Up front, Wooster's block played a key role in holding Geneseo to a .078 hitting percentage as the Scots totaled 12 blocks in the match, led by a quartet of solo stuffs by Roberts. In the back row, Murray paced the team with 25 digs.

In the weekend finale, Wooster rallied back to tie the match at one before host Mount Union closed out an eventual 25-21, 23-25, 25-18, 25-17 four-setter.

During the match versus the Purple Raiders, Klue logged her third double-double of the season-opening tourney to lead the way with 12 kills and 10 digs, while Cyvas backed that up with 10 hills and a trio of blocks.

For the weekend, Basinski and Murray combined for over six digs per set out of the back row, while junior Ashley Plassard excelled at the net with 10 blocks in 16 sets.

Next, Wooster opens up its 10-match home slate against Thiel College at 7 p.m. on Wednesday.