Lady Senators cruise to straight-set win in home opener

MORRISTOWN, Tenn. — There was a distinct physical advantage in Walters State's front line and Bryan College never found an answer for it. Behind seven kills from Courtney Dotson, the Lady Senators blasted by the Lions 3-0 (25-11, 25-9 and 25-12) Wednesday night at 'Z'Buda Gymnasium.

While the games were never close, Walters State coach Megan Blaylock felt her team could have gotten off to a quicker start.

"I think they hung (with us) more than I would have liked them to," Blaylock said. "We're a little green. We have nine freshmen. It takes a little bit of getting used to. We found our way a little bit more in the third set. They vibed a little bit better together. It was slow moving for the first couple of sets, but they played well."

The Lady Senators (4-1) took a 15-8 lead early in the opening match. Dotson, along with Olivia Oxendine and Alaysia McGhee were a wall up front as Amanda Singleton poured it on from the service line. Singleton recorded 12 services aces in the match, but she wasn't alone. Taylor Tigue notched seven aces and Dotson put three in the scorebook.

"We really focus on that in practice, a really tough serve," Blaylock said. "We spend 30 minutes at least on it and it correlated to our performance tonight."

The Lions would add just three more points for the rest of the opening game, as the Lady Senators poured it on.

Game two got away from Bryan quickly, with the Lady Senators front line again wreaking havoc. It was tough for the Lions to get the ball over the net as Walters State had four blocks as a team, with two apiece from Oxendine and Alaysia McGhee.

Bryan was able to do some work, with kills from MyKayla Hampton and Mary Laxton sneaking balls over the net, but no real damage was done. The second game wrapped up quick, with the Lady Senators building a double-digit lead early and cruising to the finish.

"We have size this year on the front row and we didn't have that last year," Blaylock said. "It's a nice change. They're impressive. We've been emphasizing in practice to be aggressive on the net. I think that may have showed up tonight."

Bryan's best game was the third set, where they found themselves ahead early for the first time, 6-2. It didn't last. Walters State made an adjustment and held Bryan to just six points the rest of the way.

The Lady Senators are back in action on Saturday when they host Surry Community College at 2 p.m. at 'Z' Buda Gymnasium.