Consider it a complete weekend for the Odessa College volleyball team.

The Lady Wranglers won four matches in two days Friday and Saturday in nonconference action at the Midland College Invitational — including a five-set nail-biter Saturday morning in which head coach Kristi Gray said the Lady Wranglers showed the resiliency and resolve they'll likely need down the upcoming stretch of the conference season throughout October.

Odessa College trailed Lee College two sets to one in Saturday's opener, but battled back to win 25-18, 30-32, 26-28, 25-19, 15-7.

Gray said she was glad to see her team be challenged by Lee College — and, of course, she was glad to see her team respond to that challenge the way the Lady Wranglers did.

"The girls showed a lot of heart," Gray said.

Odessa College trailed 6-4 early in that fifth and deciding set, but the Lady Wranglers closed on an 11-1 run to take the match.

"That was huge," Gray said of the win. "We preach all season being humble and being hungry. I think they kind of showed that. We haven't really been put in that situation in a long time.

"It was good to be put in that situation in a fifth set and be able to finish strong."

After that victory, Odessa College downed Coastal Bend College 25-13, 25-19, 25-10 to close the weekend with four wins. Those victories moved the Lady Wranglers to 20-3 on the season.

Odessa College holds a 4-0 record in WJCAC play, and will step back into league action Wednesday for a match at NMMI. The Lady Wranglers have seven regular-season games left on their schedule, with six of them being conference games.

That's why the Lady Wranglers were glad to be tested by Lee College on Saturday, and glad to survive that test.

"We showed heart" against Lee College, sophomore outside hitter Alison Fuatu said. "That was a very good win for us, I think.

"It felt really good, honestly. That was probably the best win that we've ever had, I'm not gonna lie. It felt really good. Because we were up and then we went down — it was like a rollercoaster — but then we fought back in the end. It was a good feeling."

Fuata picked up a team-high 23 digs and put down 10 kills in that win. Sophomore outside hitter Monica Muskat led the Lady Wranglers with 17 kills, including the game-deciding kill she smoked down to put away that fifth set.

"Our coach always tells us that what's in the past is in the past," Muskat said. "What's in the past, losses in the past — it doesn't really matter, except what you learn from it.

"We shouldn't have let it get that far, but it did, and we finished it."

In the day's finale against Coastal Bend College, freshman middle blocker Bojana Bolozan recorded a team-best nine kills and 2.5 blocks, while Muskat added seven more kills and another 2.5 blocks as the Lady Wranglers cruised.

"It was good for them to stay focused and get the win in three," Gray said.

OC's two matches were played back-to-back Saturday, with first serve for the Coastal Bend College match not long after the conclusion of the Lee College match.

"After that (Lee College) game we were pretty tired, so it showed mental toughness at the end, especially for this (Coastal Bend College) game, to be able to just push through and pull off a win," Fuata said.

Odessa College stands as the only unbeaten team in the WJCAC standings, but the Lady Wranglers' next opponent, New Mexico Military Institute, is second at 3-1.

Wednesday's match will wrap the first half of the conference schedule for the Lady Wranglers.

"I'm excited to go to NMMI," Gray said. "I think that it will be a tough match, but I think it will be a fun match for us."

Article by Justin Lee OA