BELTON, Texas –
Tristyn Massey and
Georgia Quiroz each had double-double performances, while setting a single-season school record in assists, as the Concordia Texas volleyball team defeated McMurry on Friday to earn their second straight American Southwest Conference Tournament semifinal appearance.
In the first match of the day, the Tornados took on the top seed from the ASC East Division in UT Dallas, falling in straight sets, 17-25, 17-25, 17-25.
Georgia Quiroz recorded her fourth straight double-double after tallying a team-high 22 assists to go along with her 10 digs.
Tristyn Massey had a near double-double, recording a team-high 11 digs and eight kills, while
Ally Combs had 11 digs as well.
After dropping the first set of the match, CTX looked to even it up. The Tornados would cut the deficit to one at 11-10, but an 8-2 Comets run would extend their lead and go on to take the set 25-17.
In the final set, CTX mustered up a late comeback facing match point against UTD, winning four straight points before the Comets closed it out in straight sets.
With the loss, the Tornados moved to the loser's bracket of the tournament, facing McMurry in the second match of the day.
Against the War Hawks, CTX would bounce back behind Massey's 18 kills and Quiroz's 43 assists to thwart McMurry in four sets, 25-20, 20-25, 25-13, 25-23.
In the opening set, the Tornados would rack up 15 kills in a back-and-forth set. Holding a slim 17-16 lead, CTX would go on an 8-4 run, capped off by a Massey kill to win it 25-20.
The War Hawks would respond by taking the second set 25-20, tying the match at a set apiece.
In set three, the Tornados would dominate from the start, jumping out to a 16-5 lead. They would hit at a .325 mark with 14 kills as a team to take the set 25-13.
In the final set, CTX would fall behind early 6-2. Trailing by three, the Tornados would not be rattled, winning seven of the next eight points to take their first lead of the set at 17-14.
Concordia Texas would close out the set and the match thanks to a pair of McM attack errors to win the match 3-1 and move on to the ASC semifinals for the third time in the last four seasons.
Quiroz totaled 65 assists for the day, giving her the single-season record for assists in the 25-point rally scoring era with 965, besting
Zoe Allen's 924 mark set in 2014.
Massey, along with her 18 kills, had 15 digs for the match, while
Rylee Davis racked up a game-high 28 digs.
Next, the Tornados will face the loser of the winner's bracket match between Mary Hardin-Baylor and UT Dallas on Saturday at 11 a.m. at the Mayborn Campus Center in Belton, Texas with a spot in the championship match on the line.