The Lady Buffs (3-1 overall) opened a new era under first-year head coach Brittany Harry playing four games over three days. Harry’s opener didn’t start well dropping a five-set hard fought match against a very good No. 18 Ferris State squad, but the Lady Buffs did rebound to get three straight wins over Harry’s former team, Texas A&M International, No. 15 Central Missouri and West Virginia State.
Lady Buffs fall to Ferris State
Thursday nights season opener turned into the Top 25 showdown that everyone expected as the No. 3-ranked Lady Buffs battled back from a two-set deficit before falling in a five-set thriller (20-25, 21-25, 25-22, 25-16, 12-15) to the No. 18-ranked Ferris State Bulldogs in front of 691 fans in Canyon to close out the opening day of the BritKare Lady Buff Classic.
With the victory, Ferris State snapped the Lady Buffs 30-match win streak which had been the second longest in the nation at any level of NCAA volleyball.
Emma Becker led the way for the Lady Buffs as the junior from Liberty Hill had 17 kills on 46 attacks with three errors to hit .304 with three assists, two aces and nine digs to finish just shy of a double-double. Freshman Kaycee Cavanaugh impressed for the Lady Buffs with 13 kills and 19 digs for a double-double in her first collegiate match.
Canyon graduate Bryli Contreras led the way in the back row with 26 digs while Camy Jones and Hereford graduate Taytum Stow had six blocks each.
WTAMU downs Texas A&M International
Head coach Brittany Harry picked up her first victory for the Lady Buffs Friday afternoon as the Lady Buffs swept past Lone Star Conference foe and Harry’s former team, Texas A&M International, 25-20, 25-17, 26-24.
The Lady Buffs finished the afternoon with 44 kills on 95 swings with 17 attack errors to hit .284 as a team with 42 assists, seven service aces, 38 digs and seven blocks.
Becker paced the Lady Buffs with 14 kills on 24 swings with just one attack error to hit .542 on the afternoon to go along with six digs, two blocks and an ace.
Jones chipped in nine kills followed by Cavanaugh and Angelina Oliver with seven each.
Lady Buffs outlast Central Missouri
West Texas A&M picked up their second victory of the day on Friday night as they started fast in a key four-set win over No. 15 Central Missouri (25-15, 19-25, 25-23, 25-22).
The Lady Buffs finished the night with 50 kills on 143 swings with 25 attack errors to hit .175 to go along with 47 assists, seven aces, 62 digs and five blocks.
Becker had a team-high 12 kills to go with 14 digs for a double-double. Contreras was once again great on the back row with 17 digs.
WTAMU closes out tourney with sweep of West Virginia State
WTAMU closed out the season-opening tournament in style on Saturday rolling by West Virginia State in straight sets (25-20, 25-10, 25-13) in front of over 700 fans at the WTAMU Fieldhouse.
The Lady Buffs finished the match with 37 kills on 78 swings with just eight attack errors to hit .372 as a team to go along with 32 assists, five aces, 29 digs and 12 blocks. West Virginia State registered 25 kills on 87 swings with 22 attack errors to hit just .034 in the match with 22 assists, one ace, 21 digs and one block.
Oliver had a big outing with nine kills and six blocks. Becker capped off a tremendous weekend with eight kills and seven digs and Contreras led the back row with nine digs.
Next up
The Lady Buffs hit the road to take part in the Colorado Premiere Challenge starting on Friday in Denver, Colo.
Local notes
This tournament was also a homecoming for two former Amarillo-area volleyball standouts.
Amarillo High graduate Chelsie Freeman returned home playing in her senior season for the Ferris State Bulldogs.
Freeman is in her third year at FSU where she has become one of the go-to players at middle blocker. The 6-foot Freeman had an outstanding weekend helping the Bulldogs to a perfect 3-0 mark during the BritKare Lady Buff Classic.
Freeman, who has played in 73 career games for FSU, totaled 31 kills including 15 in a victory against West Texas A&M. On top of her outstanding play offensively, Freeman totaled 10 blocks with six digs.
The 2017 Randall High School graduate most recently served as the Assistant Women’s Volleyball Coach at the University of Charleston.
Moore was named the assistant coach at Charleston in the spring of 2023 and was an integral part of the coaching staff that led the Golden Eagles to a 24-10 overall record and a second-place finish in the MEC South Division.
Moore played at Division II Lubbock Christian University from 2017 until 2021. She was her team’s captain in her junior and senior seasons. She garnered three first team all-conference selections and won a conference championship with the Chaps.
Moore earned her bachelor’s degree in organizational communication from Lubbock Christian in 2021. She made the Dean’s List her first three years and the President’s List her senior year. She is currently pursuing a master’s degree in strategic leadership from the University of Charleston.
