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Blinn volleyball places eighth at the national tournament
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The Blinn College volleyball team put forth an incredible season-long performance this fall, recording a 39-4 record that included the Region XIV Conference regular-season and tournament championships and a second consecutive trip to the NJCAA Division I Volleyball Championship.
The Buccaneers placed eighth at the national tournament in Hutchinson, Kan.
Blinn began its season ranked sixth in the NJCAA top20 rankings and made its way to No. 2 in the nation on Oct. 18, where it stayed for the remainder of the season. After winning the Region XIV Conference Tournament, the Buccaneers earned a No. 1 seed at the national tournament.
Blinn’s season featured a remarkable 38-match winning streak which stretched between Aug. 21 and Nov. 18. The Buccaneers’ impressive season also included 29 match sweeps.
Blinn captured the Region XIV championship outright with a 16-0 record that included 12 three-set victories. The Buccaneers earned the Region XIV Tournament title on Nov. 6 with a sweep of Panola College in the finals.
At the national tournament, Blinn opened play with a sweep of No. 16 Hill College and advanced to the quarterfinal round.
For its efforts, Blinn was acknowledged with a plethora of individual awards.
Gamble, who completed his fourth season with the Buccaneers, was named the Region XIV Coach of the Year. He also finished the season with 996 career wins at the collegiate level. Sophomore hitter Jayde Shelton was named the Region XIV Player of the Year and sophomore Lixai Perez was named Region XIV Libero of the Year.
Shelton, Perez, and fellow sophomores Reagan Casey and Guilia Hortelan each were named to the All-Region XIV first team. Sophomore Charde Van Zandt was named to the second team.
Following Blinn’s regional tournament championship, Hortelan was honored as the Region XIV Tournament Most Valuable Player while Casey and sophomore middle blocker Ashley Taylor were named to the Region XIV AllTournament team.
