BOURBONNAIS, Ill. - The Olivet Nazarene University women's volleyball team kicked off their NAIA national tournament run with a bang this afternoon as they had no problem defeating Evangel University (Mo.) in three games with final scores of 25-18, 25-18, 25-18. The Crusaders came in with a lot of energy, but ONU quickly squelched it with long runs in each game.

In game one, Evangel jumped out to a quick 2-0 lead before a serving error sent the momentum straight in ONU's favor. Jumping ahead with the score of 5-2, the Crusaders clawed back to within one point, but a kill by setter Erin Sikora (Elgin, Ill.) opened the door to a 5 point scoring run. Evangel decided to slow ONU down with a timeout. The strategy worked as Olivet registered a serving error on their next attempt, making the score 19-13. After exchanging points, crowd raising kills by Sikora and Stephanie Smith (Bourbonnais, Ill.) allowed the Tigers to take game one with a score of 25-18.

Game two was a story of serving errors, as Evangel put up four in the set during key situations. Kaley Lyons (Springfield, Mo.) put up great numbers in the game, recording 6 kills (14 total), but it wasn't enouugh as the Crusaders never really gave themselves a chance. After fighting back to make the score 4-2, ONU's Smith was able to tally four straight points for her squad, including one service ace. A kill by Lyons gave the ball back to EU, but a serving error after a short run killed another opportunity for the Crusaders to come back. Evangel came within three points at 17-14, but it would be as close as they would get, with the set ending at 25-18.

With the end in sight, Olivet let loose in game number three. The game started with a long rally, that ended in the Crusaders' favor. ONU retaliated to jump to a 6-3 lead before a kill by EU's Amanda Robertson (Willard, Mo.) made the score 6-4. The excitment didn't last long though as Olivet put some tips together to fool the EU defense. With the score at 10-6, a solo block from Lyons allowed Evangel to slowly begin to fight back. After a kill by Brittni Jessen (Rogersville, Mo.), EU tied the score for the first time on the afternoon at 12-12. Points were exchanged, before Olivet took off on the scoring run that would close the door on Evangel's hopes of advancing. Terese Byrne (Downers Grove, Ill.) rattled off 5 straight serves for her squad before EU took a time out. An attacking error by Carolyn Goettsch (Utica Mich.) gave the Crusaders the ball back at 18-14. EU would tack on 4 more points, but never gave the Tigers a challenge, as ONU stormed their way to the 25-18 win.

Two Tigers attacked over .500 on the afternoon, led by Tara Schmidt's (Olathe, Kan.) .692. In Schmidt's return after a severly sprained ankle sidelined her for 34 sets, the opposite side hitter did not disappoint she looked as refreshed as ever. Sara Byrne (Downers Grove, Ill.) attacked with a .529 percentage, tallying 9 more kills to add to her team leading 439. Sikora registered 37 assists, while Smith anchored the defense with 13 total digs.

Lyons performed the best for the Crusaders as she totaled 14 kills while attacking at a .407 clip. Assists were split by setters Lauren O'Donnell (Arvada, Colo.) and Jaimie McCallister (Ozark, Mo.) with 16 and 14, respectively. Libero Hilary Taylor (Springfield, Mo.) led EU's defense with 9 digs, while Jessen registered the lone service ace for her club.

With the win, the Tigers improve to 35-8 overall on the season, as the Crusaders end their season at 28-9. ONU advances to the pool play round of the NAIA tournament that will take place in the Tyson Event Center/Gateway Arena in Sioux City, Iowa on Tuesday, Dec. 1 through Saturday, Dec. 5. Announcements on who the Tigers will face and determination of match times will be confirmed tomorrow evening.