JACKSON, Miss. -- The Westminster College volleyball team stopped in Jackson, Mississippi, on Thursday before the start of St. Louis Intercollegiate Atheltic Conference play on Saturday.
The Blue Jays faced off against the Belhaven University Blazers in the last game on their nonconference schedule.
The Jays dominated the first set 25-14 and won the match 3-1 (25-14, 25-22, 26-24, 25-17).
Westminster improved to 3-7 on the year, and Belhaven fell to 2-11.
The Blue Jays set the tone early, winning the first set decisively, 25-14.
The Blazers responded and then made the next two sets highly contested.
Westminster won set two, 25-22.
Belhaven won the third set 26-24 to avoid being swept.
The Blue Jays won the fourth set 27-17 and took the match 3-1.
Sophomore middle Meghan Nolte had her most significant game of the season, leading the Blue Jays in kills with 15 and had two blocks.
Malena Bixby had another double-double with 12 kills and digs. Her sixth double-double of the season and her third game in a row doing so.
Westminster was solid on defense, with four different Blue Jays having double-digit digs.
Libero Kristen Schrader led the way for Westminster with 14 digs.
Braylee Montgomery had 35 assists for the Jays and had 13 digs.
Freshman Haylie Schnake and Gracie Henrikson both had three service aces in the match, making up six of the eight that Westminster had.
The Blue Jays gained some momentum before the start of conference play. They start SLIAC season versus Mississippi University for Women (MUW) and Spalding University on Saturday in the MUW Tri-Match.
The Blue Jays will face the Owls at 10 a.m. and the Golden Eagles at noon.