BROWNWOOD, Texas – Sarah Ghormley and Georgia Quiroz each recorded a double-double in back-to-back matches as the Concordia Texas volleyball team opened their 2021 season on Saturday with a pair of sweeps over Howard Payne.

The Tornados, who had their season-opening matches against the Yellow Jackets delayed last week due to the winter weather in the state, returned to the court for the first time in over a year.

They showed no signs of rust though, averaging double-digit kills per a set in both matches on the day.

In the first match, it was Quiroz and Ghormley leading CTX on both sides of the ball. The duo each had a team-high 16 digs in the match, while offensively, Quiroz racked up 29 assists and Ghormley hit at a .355 mark to finish with a team-high 14 kills as the Tornados won in three sets 25-21, 25-21, 25-23.

After taking the first two sets handily, the Tornados rallied in the final frame, closing the match out on a 7-3 run, capped off by back-to-back kills by newcomer Ky'Lexus Block to shut the door on HPU.

In the second match of the night, CTX found its groove, dominating at the net and hitting .314 as a team to win in straight sets 25-15, 25-20, 25-10.

Once again, the Tornados were aided by the play of Ghormley and Quiroz, who each had double-doubles in the match. Ghormley produced 13 kills on a .345 hitting percentage along with 10 digs, while Quiroz dished out 32 assists and had 10 digs as well.

In the opening set, after exchanging the lead back and forth with the Yellow Jackets and facing a 14-13 disadvantage, CTX pulled away with 10 straight points as a part of an 11-1 run to win the set.

In the following set, the Tornados' offense struggled, but took advantage of HPU's late-set mistakes, closing out the frame on a 5-1 spurt to take a commanding 2-0 lead.

It was all CTX in the final set, racking up 15 kills as a team in the frame with a .500 hitting percentage to complete the second sweep of the night.

Sophomore Laina DeLeon had a strong start to her season, finishing the match with a career-high 17 digs, while transfer Shyler Mayfield totaled nine kills on 15 attempts in her Tornado debut.

Next, CTX will turn their attention to Hardin-Simmons, traveling to Abilene, Texas for a doubleheader on Saturday at 5 p.m. and 7 p.m.