PULASKI, Tenn. – The Martin Methodist Volleyball team continued its fast start in the Southern States Athletic Conference with a pair of home victories this weekend in the Curry Christian Life Center.
On Friday, the RedHawks soared to an easy straight-set sweep over Brewton-Parker (Ga.) College and then followed up with a similar 3-0 victory over Middle Georgia State University on Saturday.
The wins lifted the RedHawks (17-5, 8-1 SSAC) to within one game of first place in the league and gave the squad a two-match cushion on Bethel (Tenn.) University for the third position in the standings.
Martin Methodist 3, Brewton-Parker 0 (25-14, 25-13, 25-13):
The RedHawks opened their weekend with a straight-set victory over the Barons (4-16, 0-8 SSAC) of Brewton-Parker (Ga.) College.
The RedHawks had a strong offensive performance in the victory with 33 kills on 78 total attacks. And while no RedHawk finished with double-digit kills, three RedHawks finished with five or more kills in the win.
Sabrie Sirmones led the squad with eight kills on 17 attacks. Lauren Martin (7-of-20) and Sophia Paes (5-of-13) rounded out the notable attack performances for the RedHawks. Freshman Kalei Merrifield notched her career high with three kills in her home opener.
Belen Albertos Acensio led the RedHawks with 18 total digs while Sydney Arnold notched 23 assists in the victory.
Martin Methodist 3, Middle Georgia 0 (29-27, 27-25, 25-9):
The RedHawks closed the weekend with a dramatic victory over Middle Georgia in the Curry Christian Life Center.
The RedHawks were locked in a back-and-forth contest for the first two sets, highlighted by a wild 29-27 victory for the home side in the first set of the day. The second set would see the RedHawks take a 27-25 edge in another extended period of play.
Sabrie Sirmones led the RedHawks with 17 kills on 36 attacks for a blistering .444 attack percentage. Sirmones accounted for over half of the RedHawks 32 kills on the afternoon.
Sophia Paes flanked Sirmones on the opposite side of the court with seven kills on 26 total attempts. No other RedHawk finished with more than four kills on the day.
The steady senior Belen Albertos Acension notched 18 digs to pace the RedHawks and Sydney Arnold accounted for 23 of the team's 28 assists on the afternoon.
