SAN ANTONIO — Starting the 2026 season at the Trinity University Classic in San Antonio, No. 4 East Texas Baptist University went 1-1. ETBU opened with a 3-2 win over Gustavus Adolphus before falling to host No. 2 Trinity University, 3-0.
ETBU 3, GAC 2
Opening the 2026 with a reserve sweep, No. 4 East Texas Baptist University came from behind for a five-set win over Gustavus Adolphus 3-2 at the Trinity University Classic. After dropping the first two sets 21-25 and 23-25, ETBU won the final three 25-17, 25-22 and 15-13 to move to 1-0 on the year.
Lara Hornsby scored a team-high 20.5 points with 16 kills, two service aces, 11 digs and five total blocks.
Katherine Server matched the team high with 16 kills, hit .382 and added six total blocks.
Kendall Kreusler recorded a team-high nine total blocks and added two kills and one ace.
Sadie Kasowski collected a team-high 16 digs and added four assists while
Sydney Temple had 28 assists.
ETBU moved in front 21-19 on back-to-back kills by Server, both set by Temple, but Gustavus Adolphus scored the final six points to take the first set 25-21. Hornsby also helped keep the Tigers level through the middle of the set with multiple kills before Gustavus Adolphus closed it out.
The Tigers held a 23-21 lead late in set two, but Gustavus Adolphus scored the final four points to take the set, 25-23. Earlier, ETBU used a 6-0 run from a 3-3 tie to go ahead 9-3, with Kasowski serving five straight points and Hornsby finishing the stretch with a kill from Temple.
ETBU created the key separation in the third set with four straight points on Temple's serve, moving from 18-15 to 22-15. That stretch included an
Anita Hancock-
Emily Sitton block, a Temple service ace and a Hancock kill. Server added kills for points 23 and 24 before she and Kreusler combined on the block that ended the set at 25-17.
The Tigers erased a 20-18 deficit late in the fourth set, using a Sitton kill, two Gustavus Adolphus attack errors and a Hornsby kill to move in front 22-20. Hancock added a kill for a 23-21 lead, and after Gustavus Adolphus pulled within one, Server's kill brought up set point. ETBU finished the set at 25-22 on a block by Kreusler and Hornsby.
ETBU answered an 11-12 deficit in the fifth set by scoring four of the final five points, with Server and Hornsby recording kills before Gustavus Adolphus errors supplied the last two points. Earlier, the Tigers turned a 3-2 deficit into a 7-4 lead behind a Hornsby kill, a
McKinzie Riley kill and three Gustavus Adolphus errors as ETBU took the set 15-13.
ETBU faces No. 2 Trinity (Texas) at 5:30 p.m. at Ron and Genie Calgaard Gymnasium in San Antonio, Texas.
By Set Breakdown
First Set
- ETBU dropped the opening set 25-21.
- The Tigers finished with 16 kills to Gustavus Adolphus' 11, with Katherine Server and Lara Hornsby each recording five and McKinzie Riley adding three.
- Gustavus Adolphus held a 3-1 advantage in service aces, while Kreusler accounted for ETBU's ace.
Second Set
- ETBU fell 25-23 despite using a 6-0 run to move from a 3-3 tie to a 9-3 lead.
- Sadie Kasowski served five straight points during that early run, which ended on a Lara Hornsby kill.
- Gustavus Adolphus scored the final four points after the Tigers led 23-21, tying the set at 23-23 and taking a 24-23 lead before the set-ending point.
- Gustavus Adolphus finished with a 13-7 edge in kills and a 2-1 edge in aces; ETBU was credited on seven blocks of Gustavus Adolphus attack errors.
Third Set
- ETBU won the third set 25-17.
- Sydney Temple finished with six assists and a service ace, serving the Tigers through a four-point stretch from 18-15 to 22-15.
- Katherine Server led ETBU with five kills and added two block assists, including one with Kreusler on the set-ending point.
Forth Set
- ETBU won the fourth set 25-22, extending the match to a fifth set.
- The Tigers moved from a 20-18 deficit to a 23-21 lead behind kills from Emily Sitton, Lara Hornsby and Anita Hancock, along with two Gustavus Adolphus attack errors.
- Lara Hornsby finished with six kills in the set, while Emily Sitton added four.
- ETBU recorded 17 kills to Gustavus Adolphus' 14 and closed the set on a block by Kreusler and Hornsby.
Fifth Set
- ETBU won the fifth set 15-13 to finish a 3-2 match victory.
- After Gustavus Adolphus led 12-11, the Tigers took four of the final five points, with Katherine Server and Lara Hornsby recording kills before two Gustavus Adolphus errors accounted for the last two ETBU points.
- Lara Hornsby, McKinzie Riley and Katherine Server each had two kills in the set, while Sydney Temple assisted five of ETBU's eight kills.
- The Tigers turned a 3-2 deficit into a 7-4 lead by taking five of six points, including kills from Hornsby and Riley.
ETBU Top Performers
Lara Hornsby
- team-high 20.5 points
- 16 kills
- 11 digs
- 5 total blocks
Katherine Server
- 19 points
- 16 kills on .382 hitting
- 6 total blocks
Kendall Kreusler
- team-high 9 total blocks
- 7.5 points
Sydney Temple
- team-high 28 assists
- 8 digs
- 1 service ace
Sadie Kasowski
- team-high 16 digs
- 4 assists
No. 2 TU 3, No. 4 ETBU 0
In a battle of top five programs, No. 4 East Texas Baptist University battled strongly with No. 2 Trinity University (TX) but fell in three sets, 11-25, 21-25 and 22-25. After the opening set, the Tigers pushed the final two sets closer finishing with 33 kills and 34 digs.
Lara Hornsby led ETBU with eight kills and added five digs and a service ace.
Anita Hancock recorded six kills on .462 hitting and added two block assists. Hancock achieved a season-high hitting percentage of .462.
Carleigh Schluter finished with 15 assists, six digs and a service ace.
Sadie Kasowski collected a team-high 11 digs and added three assists.
In set one, ETBU could not recover after Trinity (TX) turned a 13-9 set into a 17-9 advantage with three kills and a service ace. Earlier, Hancock put the Tigers on the board with a kill from
Sydney Temple, and Hornsby added two kills as ETBU worked to stay close through the opening exchanges.
McKinzie Riley and
Katherine Server followed with kills to make it 7-9, and the Tigers later reached 9-12 on a Trinity (TX) service error. Server ended the 4-0 Trinity (TX) stretch with another kill from Temple, but Trinity (TX) answered with four straight points and closed the set at 25-11.
The Tigers moved ahead early in the second set, turning a 5-4 deficit into a 10-6 lead as Hornsby recorded three kills and Trinity (TX) committed three attack errors during that stretch.
Emily Sitton added kills at key points in the middle of the set, and Server's kill gave ETBU a 15-13 edge. Trinity (TX) answered from 15-14 with three straight points to go in front 17-15, but Hornsby and Sitton kills brought the Tigers back level at 18-18 before Kreusler tied it again at 19-19. Hancock kept ETBU within one twice late with kills at 20-21 and 21-22, but Trinity (TX) scored the final three points to take the set, 25-21.
In the third set, ETBU answered a Trinity (TX) move to an 8-6 lead with a Hornsby kill, a Riley kill from Schluter, and a Schluter service ace to go ahead 9-8. Earlier, the Tigers opened the set 3-0 behind a Hancock kill from Schluter and a block by Hancock and Sitton. Trinity (TX) later built separation at 18-14, but ETBU kept working back with kills from Server, Riley, Hancock and Sitton, plus a Hornsby ace that cut the score to 19-17. The Tigers stayed within reach late after a Trinity (TX) service error and bad set, but the home team closed the set 25-22.
ETBU will face the Redlands on Saturday, Sept. 5, at 1:15 p.m. at Ron and Genie Calgaard Gymnasium in San Antonio.
By Set Breakdown
First Set
- ETBU dropped the first set 25-11, finishing with six kills and five attack errors while Trinity (TX) totaled 15 kills and two service aces.
- Katherine Server and Lara Hornsby led the Tigers with two kills apiece, and Sydney Temple recorded four assists.
- Trinity (TX) used a five-point sequence to move from 12-9 to 17-9, with Amelia Payton recording four kills during that stretch.
Second Set
- Trinity (TX) took the set 25-21; ETBU was within 22-21 before Trinity closed with a kill and two Tiger attack errors.
- The Tigers turned a 5-4 deficit into a 9-6 lead, with Lara Hornsby putting down two kills during that stretch.
- ETBU finished with 14 kills to Trinity (TX)'s 15, led by four apiece from Hornsby and Emily Sitton; Schluter and Sydney Temple each assisted on five Tiger kills.
Third Set
ETBU Top Performers
Lara Hornsby
- team-high 8 kills
- team-high 9.0 points
- 5 digs
- 1 service ace
Anita Hancock
- 6 kills with 0 errors on 13 attempts
- .462 hitting percentage
- 2 blocks
Carleigh Schluter
- team-high 15 assists
- 6 digs
- 1 service ace
Sadie Kasowski
- team-high 11 digs
- 3 assists
