The Temple College Leopards Volleyball played the first of two multi-squad scrimmages on Wednesday, as Dallas College Eastfield played host to the five-team scrimmage.
TC took on the two-time defending NJCAA Division III Eastfield Harvester Bees to start the day.
The Harvester Bees held the momentum for most of the 50-minute period, as they took the first two sets. The Leopards played evenly with Eastfield in the third game until a late push by the Harvester Bees as time expired demonstrated their resilience and chemistry.
Eastfield won 25-10, 25-11, and 18-15.
Temple's second match of the day was against fellow North Texas Junior College Athletic Conference foe Hill College.
The Leopards played much better in the second match, as Temple put together a seven-point streak second game which flipped a four-point deficit over to a three-point lead. The Rebels answered by scoring 11 of the final 15 points of the set. Time ran out of the Leopards, as the Rebels scored four of the last five points to close out the game.
The scores were 25-14, 25-21, and 8-8, with Hill winning two games.
Following a break, the Leopards took on Region 14's Navarro College.
Again, the Leopards played the Bulldogs tough throughout the match. Navarro's seasoned group whether several great Leopards rallies, and Temple had an opportunity late in game two but came up short.
The scores were 25-16, 25-22, and 7-6, with Navarro having claimed all three games.
Temple's final scrimmage match of the day was against Division II Rose State College (OK).
The Leopards bounced back from an early three-point deficit with a 20-4 run, which included a seven-point service run by Abbie Soileau. A flurry of second-game kills by Yasmine Traore, Lana Wright, and Kharma Brown, and aces by Traore, Soileau, Hanna Ward, and Karlee Williamson in the third game to aid TC's effort to end the day.
Temple won by scores of 25-11, 25-18, and 14-9.
Head volleyball coach Rachel Melancon was pleased with the team's performance, as it indoctrinated the freshman into the midst of elevated collegiate volleyball.
"Today was a great opportunity to introduce the freshmen to a new level of play, and I am proud of the way the sophomores helped guide them through the process," Melancon said. "It was fun to see them fight as a team to execute our game plan in the last two matches after a difficult time producing that morning."
Based on her observation of Wednesday's contests, Melancon feels that if the team continues to stay the course, great things are ahead for the Leopards.
"We can have a good season if they continue to trust the process and believe in us as coaches to lead them in uncomfortsble situations in order to grow," Melancon said. "These freshmen have grit and energy. So, I am eager to see how it all plays out in the end."
The Leopards will head to Arlington on Friday to participate in a four-team round round scrimmage, hosted by Arlington Baptist. At 10:10 a.m., the Leopards will take on Dallas College North Lake. At 11:20 a.m., the Leopards will play Coastal Bend College. Temple will take on Arlington Baptist to finish the day at 1:40 p.m.