PENSACOLA, Fla. – Day two of the West Florida Invitational featured a matchup between the No. 7 ranked Regis University volleyball team (1-2) and No. 5 Western Washington University (0-3). Regis downed the Vikings 3-1 for their first win of the 2018 season. 
 
How It Happened:The Rangers went down 2-6 early on in the first set, but the team rallied back with junior Izzy Gosar and Kelsey Green on the attack. With the score tied at 17 apiece, a ball-handling error from WWU and a massive kill from junior Nikki Kennedy propelled RU into the lead. The team looked strong in their passing game, closing out the game out on a 8-3 run to take the opening set of the match 25-20.
 
The Rangers dropped set two, 25-19, despite holding an early 10-7 lead. The Vikings put together back-to-back 4-0 runs that saw them jump ahead 16-12. WWU finished the second set with two-straight kills, tying the match at 1-1.
 
Set three was another close battle until Kennedy and sophomore Caitlyn Burroway rattled off four kills in a row to bring Regis to set point 24-19. A kill from junior setter Silvia Basso ended the game. Basso displayed great court vision throughout set three, providing offense from the setter position that is very hard to account for as a defense.
 
The fourth set of the match proved to be the deciding set as the Rangers went on to seal the match with a 25-20 win. It was a quick and efficient start, coupled with solid passing, that not only kept RU in-system, but also forced the Vikings into difficult plays. Once again, Basso finished the game with a dump-shot, her sixth of the match, which preserved Regis' first win in 2018. 
 
Game Notes: Burroway was the team leader with 14 kills, with Green adding 13 and Kennedy chipping in with 10. Basso matched a career-high with six kills, registering 42 assists, and picking up 10 digs. Senior Kristina Schell posted 19 digs in the match with Burroway notching 17. Kennedy was the leader with five total blocks, but five others recorded at least one block in the match. The team hit .219 for the match which was their best attack percentage through the first three games. Basso led the way with a .600 attack percentage, making no errors in 10 attempts. 
 
Up Next for the Rangers:The No. 7 ranked Regis University volleyball team will matchup with the No. 2 ranked team in the country, Southwest Minnesota State, at 1 p.m. MST later today.