WHARTON, Texas — The No. 7 Blinn College volleyball team concluded the regular season with a 3-0 (25-21, 25-16, 25-18) victory over Wharton County Junior College Thursday.
The Buccaneers closed out the regular season with a 21-1 overall record and 12-1 conference record to win the conference championship. Blinn will enter the Region XIV tournament as the No. 1 seed next week.
"It was nice to go on the road and get a win against a team that really played good and we didn't play our best," head coach Terry Gamble said. "I am happy for the girls and winning the conference championship."
Jayde Shelton led Blinn's offense with 11 kills and a .381 hitting percentage, while Essence Clerkley followed with seven kills and a .375 hitting percentage. Loren Scott led with 25 assists and four aces.
Tatum Smidovec led the Buccaneers with 11 digs, while Lixai Perez Velez tallied 10 and Kyndal Coufal had seven. Ashley Taylor, Scott, and Clerkley led Blinn with four block assists apiece.
The first set was the closest, but the Buccaneers managed to pull away for a 25-21 win. Blinn extended its lead in the match with a 25-16 victory in the second set. Blinn defeated Wharton 25-18 in the third set for the sweep.
Blinn has competed in intercollegiate athletics since 1903 and captured 41 NJCAA national championships since 1987.
