GARDEN CITY, Kan. (BartonSports.com) – The No. 9 ranked Barton Community College volleyball team opened its 2025 season with a perfect weekend, finishing 4-0 at the Scooter’s Invitational in Garden City behind two sweeps and a pair of four-set victories.
The Cougars opened Friday with a dominant sweep over Lamar Community College (25-13, 25-13, 25-9) before outlasting Eastern Wyoming College in four sets (26-24, 25-20, 26-28, 25-15). Barton carried the momentum into Saturday, rallying past Trinidad State College in four (25-27, 25-21, 25-20, 25-16) and capping the weekend with a sweep of Northeast Community College (25-14, 25-19, 25-12).
Sitting at 4-0 to start the campaign, Barton will open conference play Tuesday evening for its conference opener at Butler Community College in a 6:00 p.m. first serve.
Weekend leaders
Sophomore outside hitter Stasa Stamenkovic paced the attack with 58 kills across 14 sets, hitting .414 with double-figure kills in three matches including a weekend-high 16 against both Lamar and Trinidad State.
Freshman Caroliny Cristiny provided a steady scoring punch on the pins, finishing with 37 kills at a .2.64 clip highlighted by 16 kills on .429 hitting versus Eastern Wyoming.
At the net, Aubrey Olander anchored the defense with 20 total blocks, including nine block assists against Lamar, while Indigo Pruitt chipped in 22 kills on 54 swings over the weekend.
Running the 6-2 offense, setters Ori Briger and Janka Tolnai combined for 114 assists, with Briger dishing 77 and Tolnai adding 37 while contributing with a combined 11 service aces. Mina Kaneko steadied the back row with a team-high 77 digs, averaging 5.50 per set, and chipped in nine aces.
Match recaps
– vs. Lamar: Barton hit .337 with Stamenkovic’s 16 kills and Olander’s nine blocks leading to the sweep.
– vs Eastern Wyoming: Cristiny and Stamenkovic combined for 28 kills while Briger passed out 19 assists in the four-set victory.
– vs. Trinidad State: Stamenkovic (16 kills), Cristiny (13) and Batista (11) fueled the offense as Barton overcame a 1-0 match deficit, claiming the final three sets.
– vs. Northeast: Barton hit .315 as Briger and Kaneko combined for seven aces, Stamenkovic added 14 kills, and Pruitt hit .583 with seven kills.
