KIRTLAND, Ohio – Lakeland Community College opened up the Shannon Lee McBride Memorial Tournament with a pair of victories that ended a five-match losing streak Friday evening.
The Lakers swept Community College of Beaver County 3-0 by the score 25-17, 25-12 and 25-12 and then came back to beat Oakland Community College 3-2 by the score of 25-16, 21-25, 14-25, 25-17 and 15-13.
"We just really had to keep our focus in these matches," said Caitlin Cipriano, Lakeland setter. "Our energy was really high and that helped us a lot."
With the pair of victories, Lakeland improves to 5-5 overall and remains 3-1 in the Ohio Community College Athletic Conference.
Lakeland 3 – Beaver County 0
Lakeland got its tournament started a little later than expected but the Lakers didn't waste any time taking care of Beaver County with a 3-0 sweep.
Cary Morin led the Lakers with 13 kills while Iesha Niciu added 12. Cipriano and Morgan Smart both had 16 assists in the win while Brittney O'Hara earned 15 digs.
The first set started out pretty even but Lakeland was able to pull ahead 17-10 after a kill from Morin. Morin was able to put the finishing touches on the set with a kill as the Lakers took the first 25-17.
The Lakers looked much better in the second and third sets. Tamea Scott delivered a block in the second set for an 18-8 lead. O'Hara clinched the second set with an ace for a 25-12 victory and a 2-0 lead in sets. Lauryn Mitchell came on strong in the latter part of the third set with a block and two consecutive kills to give the Lakers a 23-12 lead. Morin delivered the final kill for a 25-12 victory to earn the sweep.
Lakeland 3 – Oakland 2
Lakeland found itself in a little trouble trailing 2-1 in sets after three but the Lakers fought back to win in five to earn a pair of victories on the day.
Niciu led with 14 kills while Krista Curtis added 10 in the win. Cipriano led with 22 assists while O'Hara led with 25 digs.
Lakeland came out with good energy in the opening set and took a 21-15 lead after a kill from Niciu. An Oakland mistake gave the Lakers a 25-16 first set win. Oakland battled back and took advantage of sinking energy to win the following two sets 25-21 and 25-14 to claim a 2-1 lead.
The Lakers found a spark in the fourth set and took a 17-13 lead after a kill from Smart. A kill from Mitchell helped force a fifth set as Lakeland claimed the fourth 25-17.
Oakland scored the first three points in the fifth set but again Lakeland battled back and took a 12-10 lead after a kill from Morin. With the score tied 13-13, Lakeland got a kill from Morin and Mitchell to close out the match with a 15-13 win.
Lakeland will close out the McBride Tournament with two more games and possibly a championship match on Saturday, Sept. 9. The Lakers will face Saint Clair County Community College at 9 a.m. and Potomac State College of West Virginia University at 1 p.m.
For more information about Lakeland athletics, visit www.athletics.lakelandcc.edu.
About Lakeland Community College
Founded in 1967, Lakeland Community College was the first college in Ohio created by a vote of the people. True to our mission, Lakeland provides quality learning opportunities to meet the social and economic needs of the community.
Offering day, evening, weekend and online classes, the college serves more than 10,800 credit and 2,800 noncredit students (2016). For more information about the College, visit www.lakelandcc.edu.
