Box Score 1 | Box Score 2 | Box Score 3 The No. 6 nationally ranked Park University women's volleyball program matched up with some of the toughest teams in the country for the Labor Day Classic Friday and Saturday, ending in a 1-2 record against No. 3 Northwestern, No. 9 Midland, and No. 2 Concordia (Neb.).

Coming into the tournament, the Pirates had three matches played, a few less than each of their opponents. With it being still early in the 2023 season Park is 4-2 and still have opportunities to grow together moving into Heart of America Athletic Conference play.

Park vs Northwestern Box Score – 9/1

The first match was between two unbeatens in the NAIA, No. 3 Northwestern and No. 6 Park. The Raiders were 6-0 entering Friday and they represent the Great Plains Athletic Conference.

It was a good early test for Park with Northwestern running out to an 8-3 lead. Park brought it back within four at 11-7, but the Raiders put their foot down and led by as much as nine points, 20-11. The Pirates had two scoring runs of three and four to bring it back within reach, but to no avail as Northwestern took set one 25-20.

Park came out firing in set two and led Northwestern 6-0. Northwestern came back with strong defense and half of their first eight points came off of blocks to rally back to 10-8. After a lead change, Park rattled off four points in a row to regain the lead 15-10, but it would be short lived as the Raiders scored six points in a row in response. Nine of the last 11 points went to Northwestern for the 25-17 win.   

Neither team in this contest hit for an especially high hitting percentage, but the storyline in this contest was the defensive effort by the Raiders as they sent back 18 blocks compared to Park's four.
Northwestern and Park were tied at 10-10 in set three, but a surge of scoring came in for the Raiders with the next nine of 10 points awarded to Northwestern. The Pirates brought the match within three points, 22-19, but Northwestern held on 25-20.

Besides the block numbers, the Raiders had the edge off the serve too with eight service aces and two less service errors than the Pirates.

Park vs Midland Box Score – 9/2

Park got out to a good start against the No. 9 Warriors and put together 14 kills in the first set. Midland came into the match with a 5-3 record and hail from the Great Plains Athletic Conference. In set one, Park ripped off a 5-1 lead to begin the match and forced a Midland timeout at 12-8 after a 4-1 run. The Pirates looked to be running away with the set at one point with a seven point lead, 18-11, but the Warriors closed the gap to one point at 24-23. Five kills were slammed down by Izabella Ceratti in set one to help Park to a close win, 25-23.

The Warriors came back strong into set two and they had six and five point scoring runs in set two to lead to a 14 point win, 25-11. Midland had six blocks in the set and the Pirates also had four service errors that made it difficult to get the offense off the ground.

Midland kept the momentum going in set three with an 8-3 lead. Park battled back to a 10-9 deficit, but the Warriors went on a 9-2 run for a 19-11 advantage. Another six blocks were put up by the Warriors and none for Park as the set closed out, 25-18.

The Pirates had the highest number of kills in the match in set four with 15 and had the highest hitting percentage as well at .262 for the set. It began as a well balanced attack in set four with four different Pirates earning a kill within the first five points scored, Barbara Almeida, Izabella Ceratti, Grecia Ung, and Malaina Hensley. Park was down four at 16-12 and turned everything around following a Coach Michael Talamantes timeout. Park went on to score the next six of seven points to bring about a Midland timeout. Another three kills coming out of the break by Park gave them the breathing room they needed to overtake the Warriors, 25-22. Four kills by Ceratti and three kills from Debora Bernardi were game changers.

Park's flame wouldn't be quenched in set five, completing the comeback in emphatic style 15-7. Hensley started things off right with two consecutive service aces. Irene Verdino would follow suit with an ace to give Park a 5-1 lead. The Pirates secured a four point scoring run and grabbed six of the last seven points for the win. Among the last six points for Park, four attack errors were committed by the Warriors.

Ung had her third double-double of the season against Midland with 14 kills and 14 digs. Matching her teammate is Arianna Marino who also is up to three double-doubles in her last three matches, including 40 assists and 20 digs against the Warriors.

Park vs Concordia Box Score – 9/2

No. 2 Concordia, like Northwestern, entered its match with Park undefeated with a 7-0 record and is Park's third GPAC opponent faced in North Sioux City, Iowa.

Looking back at last year's NAIA National Championship Tournament, the Pirates upset the Bulldogs 3-1 in Pool Play and advanced to the quarterfinals.

Set one was too close for comfort down the stretch as Park came back from a six point hole, 15-9, to a one point deficit, 16-15. Bernardi and Marino were wreaking havoc for the Bulldogs with four blocks each in the opening set, respectively. Both teams matched one another point for point in the last moments, until the Bulldogs won the last three points for the set, 25-22.

The Pirates intended to keep things close in set two and they burned both timeouts at the 8-5 and 12-9 marks, with Concordia ahead. Park continued to hang in for the next several exchanges, but the tide turned at the 16-14 mark, as Concordia roped nine of the last 11 points for the 25-16 win.

Park turned it around in the third set with a 7-2 lead out of the gate. Bernardi had her number called throughout the contest and led Park in kills in the match with 11 and had three to begin the third set. It continued to go well for the Pirates as they mustered a nine point lead at 17-8. There was little Concordia could do at this point as the Pirates cruised to a 25-16 victory.

The Pirates had their backs up against a wall in the fourth set, but played an extremely tight match with the Bulldogs highlighted by 16 ties in the set. Bernardi kept up the attack in set four with four kills and Ceratti contributed three as well. After the match's final tie though at 23-23, the Bulldogs sealed the match with the last two points for the 25-23 win. Park matched up at the block well with Concordia and each side had 10 total blocks. Bernardi and Marino were making their presence known with six and seven total blocks, respectively. Marino also turned some heads with four service aces in the match. The Pirates had the advantage with the serve with eight aces compared to Concordia's five. Park also had four less service errors.

Overall for the tournament, Park had four student-athletes earn over 20 kills over the weekend. Ceratti led the team with 27 kills, while Ung was a very close second at 26. The Pirates as a team averaged 10 kills per set for the three matches and hit .078. Park's opponents were held to a low percentage as well at .136.

Marino averaged 7.92 assists per set and distributed 95 assists for the weekend.

The 2023 Park Classic is the next bout of action for the Pirates in Breckon Sports Center on Friday, September 8 and 9 against Saint Mary and No. 14 Ottawa. WATCH HERE