CARTHAGE, Texas — No. 19 Blinn College volleyball concluded the regular season with a sweep over Temple College, 3-0 (25-12, 25-16 and 25-17) on Saturday. Earlier in the day, the Buccaneers fell to No. 15 Panola College, 3-2 (25-22, 14-25, 22-25, 25-11 and 15-13).
Blinn closed out the regular season with a 28-8 overall record and 8-0 conference record for the No. 1 seed heading into the Region XIV tournament.
"It is a nice way to end the regular season," said Terry Gamble, Blinn head coach. "We played good against Panola, but they just made some plays at the end of the match. It was good to see us bounce back against Temple."
Gamble recorded his 900th career win when the Buccaneers defeated Temple.
"To get my 900th career win with this group of girls is special and to do it coaching at Blinn College is an honor," Gamble said.
Panola 3 – Blinn 2
Blinn opened the day with a close loss to Panola, 3-2 ((25-22, 14-25, 22-25, 25-11 and 15-13).
Shelby Sheets led Blinn with 28 kills, while recording 15 digs. Samantha Boatman led the Buccaneers with 47 assists and 22 digs, while Cheyenne Te'o and Julia Fritz each recorded 13 digs, and Chloe Mullins recorded 10 digs. Brie-Anna Armstrong followed on offense with 12 kills, while Taylor Henderson tallied nine.
Although Panola opened the match ahead 1-0 with a 25-22 win, the Buccaneers worked hard to even the match by taking the second set 25-14. Panola pulled back ahead 2-1 after defeating Blinn 25-22 in the third set, but the Buccaneers fought back to come out on top in the fourth set 25-11. Panola managed to walk away with the victory after defeating Blinn 15-13 in the fifth set.
Blinn 3 – Temple 0
The Buccaneers bounced back to finish the regular season strong with a sweep over Temple, 3-0 (25-12, 25-16 and 25-17).
Sheets led Blinn's offense with 16 kills, while Henderson followed with 13 kills and Armstrong with seven. Te'o led Blinn with 13 digs, while Fritz followed with 12. Boatman recorded 32 assists in the win.
Blinn took the first set 25-12 to set an early tone. The Buccaneers continued to dominate in the second set to win 25-16 before claiming the third set 25-17 for the sweep.
The Buccaneers will open the Region XIV tournament as the No. 1 seed on Friday, Nov. 2, at 3 p.m. at Lee College in Baytown, Texas. Blinn will face the winner of No. 15 Panola and Wharton County Junior College.
Blinn has competed in intercollegiate athletics since 1903 and captured 38 NJCAA national championships since 1987.