SALEM, Ore. - Faced with adversity for the first time this season, the Carroll Volleyball Team responded in the late stages of their match against Our Lady of the Lake (Tx.) to salvage a day one split following an early afternoon loss to Oklahoma Wesleyan at the Hampton Inn Classic.

While their record is no longer perfect, the Fighting Saints (5-1) have plenty to be happy with following their first day in Oregon.A four-set loss to Oklahoma Wesleyan was made up for with a thrilling come-from-behind five-set win over OLLU in the evening to push their record to 5-1 heading into a pair of Saturday matches against two of the CCC's best.

GAME ONE: No. 13 Oklahoma Wesleyan - 3, (RV) Carroll - 1 (25-22, 20-25, 25-20, 25-21)

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The Saints suffered their first setback of the 2025 season in the opening match of the event, falling in a competitive four-set match against No. 13 Oklahoma Wesleyan.

A dismal attack spelled trouble in the first frame for Carroll, as the Saints hit just .027 in a 25-22 loss to fall behind 1-0.

Carroll responded in the second set, posting a match-high 18 kills to even things up at 1-1 with a 25-20 set win.

After leading the third set 18-17, Carroll would surrender a 5-0 run to the Eagles, who would go on to win the set 25-20, falling behind in the match 2-1.

A late Carroll push in the fourth-and-final frame was too little, too late, as the No. 13-ranked Eagles would close out the win with a 25-21 set victory.

Reigning Frontier Conference Attacker of the Week, Lauren Heuiser (Helena, Mont. / JR) continued her stellar start to the 2025 season. The junior middle led Carroll with 14 kills while adding three blocks in the loss.

Elizabeth Heuiser (Helena, Mont. / R-SR) was impressive as well, tallying 13 kills and a team-high 3.0 blocks.

True freshman Lauren Fox (Bozeman, Mont.) posted a a team-high 22 assists and a pair of aces, while her former high school teammate Sofia Kimmel (Bozeman, Mont. / FR) led the Saints with 10 digs in the match.

GAME TWO: (RV) Carroll - 3, Our Lady of the Lake - 2 (24-26, 25-21, 20-25, 25-21, 18-16)

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Looking to respond from their first loss of the year, Carroll battled back from an early hole to end the day 1-1 with a five-set victory over the Saints of OLLU.

A back-and-forth opening frame saw both sides battle for the lead early in the evening match. Carroll utilized a 4-0 run to grab a 23-22 lead, but a pair of Clarissa Rodriguez kills in extra points would give OLLU the 26-24 win and a 1-0 lead in the match.

Carroll dominated the middle stages of the second set, eventually working their way into a 24-17 lead. The second frame win wouldn't come as easily as they would have hoped, however, as OLLU scored four-straight points on set-point to make things interesting. An attack error would finally give the Fighting Saints the final point of the set though, as they held on for the 25-21 match-evening win.

OLLU took the third set 25-20 behind a .421 hitting percentage to grab a 2-1 advantage, but a resilient Carroll side would remain unbothered.

Rachael Stacey (Helena, Mont. / SR) and Lauren Heuiser took control for the Carroll attack in the fourth set, combining for half of the Saints' 16 kills in the frame to even things up at 2-2 and force a deciding fifth set.

The traditional 15 points in the final frame were not enough to decide the nightcap, with both teams going above the standard mark. A Sidney Gulick (Kalispell, Mont. / SR) kill evened the match at 15-15, leading to a pair of Lauren Heuiser kills to help close out the comeback win, 18-16.

Season kill-leader Lauren Heuiser continued her torrid pace to the early season, again pacing the Saints with 13 kills in the win while kicking in a highly-impressive 8.0 blocks.

Jansyn Carrizales (Sunnyside, Wash. / JR) led the team with 27 assists on the night, while Fox added 21 and Molly O'Connor (Bozeman, Mont. / SR) led Carroll with a 23-dig effort.

A pair of games against (RV) Bushnell and No. 3 Corban await the Saints tomorrow, with the team looking to finish their non-conference portion of the 2025 slate strong ahead of Frontier play starting next week.