ALVA, Okla. – The plains of rural Oklahoma welcomed the Lady Bluejays as they made the trek down to Alva to compete in the Northwestern Oklahoma State tournament, facing off against two NCAA Division II foes in NWOSU and William Jewell. 
 
Match One vs William Jewell L 0-3 (23-25, 19-25, 18-25)
 
The Lady Bluejays opened the day with a match against William Jewell, an opponent they had not seen since back in 2005, when the Cardinals swept the match in three sets.
 
A match-opening kill by Juliana Alaniz put the Bluejays on the board first in Set One, followed by a service ace from Mia Maly. The Cardinals answered with a quick point before a Josephine Fuamatu kill gave Tabor the 3-1 lead. Both squads traded points throughout the first set, making for a competitive match. TC took a 21-18 lead late in the set off another ace from Maly, and the Bluejays held onto the lead for a little bit longer with a slight one-point lead, 23-22. WJC took the reins and rattled off three straight points to take Set One, 25-23.
 
Set Two provided a similar picture, with the two teams trading points and knotting the score twice, first at 12 and then at 14. The Cardinals jumped out to a 20-15 lead, only allowing two more Bluejay tallies before taking Set Two, 25-19.
 
The Lady Bluejays found themselves on the wrong end of a lopsided 22-14 score towards the end of Set Three, but they would not go away, rattling off a run of three points to cut the Cardinals' lead to five, 23-18. WJC pulled away, scoring the last two points to take the set, taking the match 3-0.
 
Match Two vs Northwestern Oklahoma State L 0-3 (14-25, 20-25, 21-25)
 
Tabor met a much tougher opponent in Northwestern Oklahoma State in their final match of the weekend in a match that marked the first-ever meeting between the two programs. 
 
The Bluejays hung tight with the Rangers through the first part of Set One, trailing only by a point, 7-6. NWOSU quickly fired off five straight points to extend their lead to six and kept building onto their advantage, despite several Bluejay attempts to cut the deficit. NWOSU rolled to an 11-point win in Set One, 25-14.
 
Set Two proved to be more competitive, as Tabor stayed within five, ultimately dropping the set, 25-20.
 
Tabor continued to fight in the third set, this time pulling within four courtesy of a kill from Maly, but fell short, 25-21, dropping the match in three sets.
 
With the pair of losses, the Lady Bluejays fall to 2-13 on the season as they head into conference play.
 
The Bluejays return to the court Wednesday evening as they play host to Evangel in their first KCAC match of the 2024 campaign. 
 
Be sure to stay up to date with all information regarding Bluejay Athletics by following us on X at @gotaborbluejays, on Instagram and Facebook @taborbluejays, and on our official athletic website, taborbluejays.com.
 
Tabor College is a Christ-centered institution located in Hillsboro, Kansas. The Bluejays are members of the National Association of Intercollegiate Athletics (NAIA) and compete in the Kansas Collegiate Athletic Conference (KCAC).