CHEYENNE, Wyo. – Barbara Briceno finished with 32 kills in two matches and the No. 2 ranked Western Nebraska Community College volleyball team opened up the season with a sweep over Western Wyoming Community College and Laramie County Community College Monday in the LCCC Quad.

                Briceno finished with a double-double of 15 kills and 10 digs against Western Wyoming in the 26-24, 25-16, 25-18 win. The Cougars finished off the night by sweeping LCCC 25-19, 25-18, 25-22. Briceno tallied 17 kills in that win.

                WNCC head coach Binny Canales said his team played well today.

                "I thought we played pretty well. We had a few moments where we had some lapses, but overall it was two good wins," he said. "We controlled the matches for the most part. The girls had some fun, starting to bring some energy to the court."

                The Western Wyoming match was a battle after the Cougars won the first game 26-24. But once settling in, the team started to play better in the next two games against the Mustangs and then in the LCCC match.

                "We played pretty well against Western Wyoming. Western Wyoming did some good things," Canales said. "We were up and down and then against Laramie County we were a little bit more consistent and controlled the match a little bit better."

                The opener saw the Cougars finish with 44 kills with a hitting percentage of .298. Briceno was the only Cougar with double figure kills. Lara Picht finished the match with eight kills, while Maraea O'Connor had six and Kaylee Spreier finished with four.

                Also for the Cougars, Bia Berti finished with 31 set assists, eight service points, 10 digs, and three kills. Picht added 11 points and four digs, while Spreier had three solo blocks. Genesis Benitez-Fontanez tallied 18 digs followed by Berti with 10, O'Connor with eight, Kirstee Trees with six, and four each for Briceno, Picht, and. Brooke Kaawa.

                After the tough match with Western Wyoming, WNCC had another fight against the Golden Eagles. This time, the Cougars hit better, finishing with a .301 hitting percentage with 43 total kills. Briceno led the way with 15, but Picht pounded down 10 followed by seven from O'Connor and five from Spreier.

                Berti finished the match with 39 set assists, eight points, and nine digs. Picht had eight points along with 12 digs, while O'Connor had five points four digs. Benitez-Fontanez had three points and 13 digs. Also for the Cougars, Briceno had 10 digs.

                WNCC, 2-0, will be back in action this weekend when they compete in the Reiver Invite in Council Bluffs, Iowa. The Cougars will open the Reiver Invite against No. 1 College of Southern Idaho, the team that defeated the Cougars in last year's national championship.

                The Cougars will also face Iowa Western Community College, San Jacinto, and Highland Community College in the Invite.

                "Right know we just have to keep playing better," Canales said of what they need to do this weekend. "We are a work in progress and taking steps. A lot of other teams right now are having bumps along the way, too, and right know we just want to keep playing better and the winning will take care of itself."