It looked like a quick night for the Odessa College volleyball team after a dominating first set against Western Texas College.
The visiting Westerners had other plans.
After tying the match with a second-set victory, Western Texas battled to the wire but it wasn’t enough as the Lady Wranglers were able to hold on for a 25-14, 22-25, 25-21, 25-18 victory in the Western Junior College Athletic Conference opener for both teams Wednesday at the OC Sports Center.
The victory improved eighth-ranked Odessa College to 15-3 overall, 1-0 in WJCAC play.
Western Texas dropped to 11-5, 0-1.
“That’s the way this team has been playing,” Lady Wranglers head coach Dayana Acevedo-Rios said. “They got a little complacent after the first set and Western Texas played well.
“I’m just happy they were able to respond and bounce back to get the win. I thought they battled in the final two sets.”
Odessa College was led by outside hitters Kayla Williams, Ainara Fernandez, Daniela Rodrigues and Marcelly Perez, along with middle blocker Dahlia de los Santos.
The Lady Wranglers took control early in the first set, rolling out a 6-1 lead and slowly extending it throughout on their way to the victory
Western Texas opened the second set with a 4-1 run, but Odessa College quickly tied it up and move in front thanks to some strong serving by Williams, who was on the back line for four straight points after earning a sideout with a kill off the Lady Westerners’ block.
The teams traded sideouts until Odessa College led, 22-21, after a kill by Perez on an over pass.
Western Texas, however, would reel off the next four points to earn the second-set victory.
Odessa College, however, regained control midway through the third set, jumping out to a 19-12 lead and then hanging on for the victory and then using that momentum to close out the match in the fourth set.
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