Simpson wins opening game of 2023 season

BELTON, Texas – The Simpson College women's volleyball team got the 2023 season off to a good start with a 3-0 sweep of Concordia (Tex.) on Friday afternoon at the Mary Hardin-Baylor Tournament.

The Storm (1-1) also faced the hosts on opening day, but came up empty in a 3-0 loss.

GAME ONE SUMMARY

• Simpson won a tight first set, coming back from a late 23-21 deficit to win 26-24. Peyton Mitchell ignited the rally with a kill, while Morgan DenBeste added an ace and Courtney Paxton set up match point with a kill of her own.
• The second set also went to Simpson much thanks to eight service aces. Jada Schmidt recorded three of those and DenBeste and Mitchell added two apiece as the Storm went ahead 2-0 with a 25-20 set win.
• The Storm completed the sweep with a 25-17 victory in set three. Courtney Paxton posted four kills in seven attempts without an error in the frame.

KEY CONTRIBUTORS

• Courtney Paxton - 9 kills, 5 blocks
• Lauren Roman - 8 kills, 7 blocks
• Peyton Mitchell - 5 kills, 5 blocks, 3 aces
• Jada Schmidt - 4 kills, 3 blocks, 3 aces
• Morgan DenBeste - 17 assists, 8 digs, 3 aces

GAME TWO SUMMARY

• The two teams fought to an 11-11 tie before Mary Hardin-Baylor (2-0) separated itself with a 10-3 run, eventually winning set one 25-18.
• The Cru raced out to an early lead in the second period and cruised to a 25-17 victory behind six kills from Cameron Pesek.
• The third set saw four lead changes and seven level scores, but the Cru ultimately pulled away late for a 25-16 win.

TOP STORM

• Courtney Paxton - 8 kills
• Jada Schmidt - 7 kills
• Iman Ghalibaf - 17 digs

NOTES

• The Storm are now 3-1 in season openers under head coach KK Palea.
• Simpson tallied 11 total blocks in the win over the Tornadoes, the most since recording 13 in a five-set match on Oct. 8, 2022.
• The Storm also had double-digit aces against Concordia (Tex.) with 13, the highest total since Oct. 1 of last season.

UP NEXT
Simpson will play two more games on Saturday beginning with a 9 a.m. contest against Schreiner. The Storm's Texas trip concludes with a late morning match against Concordia M'head.