On Friday evening, College of the Ozarks Lady Bobcats breezed through the first two matches of their four-game trip to Lincoln, Ill.

The Lady Cats opened the tournament with a 5:00 p.m. match, in which they defeated Holy Family (aka Silver Lake) College in three quick sets:  25-8, 25-3, 25-11.  Highlights of the match featured:

• C of O held Holy Family to single-digit kills (9) for the match;
• Every Lady Cat played in the match;
• C of O, as a team, tallied a record-high 30 service aces;
• Izzy Gibbany posted a C of O individual best of 13 service aces;
• Rielly Wallace dished 20 assists;
• Kaylan Smith contributed 10 of the team’s 31 kills;
• Gibbany snagged 5 digs, Wallace collected 4, and Delanie Gaston nabbed 3;
• The Lady Cats posted a .431 hitting percentage.

C of O followed up at 7:00 p.m. with a three-set win over the Crowley’s Ridge College Pioneers, taking the match 25-14, 25-9, and 25-11.  Stat leaders for the Lady Bobcats featured:

• Kaylan Smith – 10 kills, 3 blocks;
• Izzy Gibbany – 17 digs;
• Haley Stallings – 3 service aces;
• Rielly Wallace – 33 assists (along with 6 kills, 7 digs);
• Ryley Thixton – 3 blocks (along with 10 digs, 8 kills).

Friday’s victories take the Lady Bobcats’ season record to 11-6.  C of O is back in action tomorrow, facing Lincoln College at 9 a.m. and Haskell Indian Nations University at 11 a.m.