The Blinn College volleyball team split its first two games at the Labor Day Classic in Brenham Friday night, sweeping Temple College in three sets before falling to 13th-ranked Western Texas in four.
Blinn defeated Temple 26-24, 25-18, 25-17 before losing to Western Texas 22-25, 25-20, 25-22, 25-12.
Freshman middle blocker Bruna Evangelista posted a team-high 10 kills against Temple, and sophomore outside hitter Ksenia Sukhareva was crucial to the Bucs' success on both offense and defense, finishing with nine kills and 17 digs. Freshman setter Crystal Young dished out 22 assists while fellow freshman Celeste Ramirez added 11, and freshman Tori Estrada contributed 14 digs.
Sukhareva posted team highs with nine kills and 13 digs against Western Texas, and Young finished with 26 assists. Evangelista had seven kills, Cara Fisher had 12 digs and Estrada finished with nine.
The Buccaneers are now 5-2 on the season. Blinn's only losses this season have come against No. 2-ranked Tyler and No. 13-ranked Western Texas.
The Buccaneers will return to tournament play Saturday with a 1 p.m. match against Labette (Kan.) and a 7 p.m. match against Panola.
