No. 5 SLCC Volleyball Splits Bruin Bash Opener, Tests No. 1 Miami Dade

Salt Lake Community College volleyball opened the 2026 Bruin Bash with a day that carried two very different kinds of evidence. The No. 5 Bruins recovered from a tight opening-set loss to beat Odessa College in four sets, then took on No. 1 Miami Dade College in another four-set match later Friday at Bruin Arena on the Redwood Campus.

The results were a 3-1 win over Odessa and a 3-1 loss to Miami Dade. The latter ended SLCC's five-match winning streak, but the official recap supplies more than a record update: it gives a clear view of the attacking production, defensive work and the level of opponent that came to Taylorsville for the event.

SLCC entered the day ranked No. 5 and left with a 10-3 record. Miami Dade arrived at 9-0, ranked No. 1 and identified by SLCC Athletics as the reigning national champion. That is the context for a Friday split that began as a comeback and closed with a nationally relevant measuring-stick match.

Odessa took the first set. SLCC took the match.

Odessa College won the opening set 29-27 after SLCC had set points, according to the Bruins' official game recap. That first frame was the narrowest possible kind of early setback: two points separated the teams, and SLCC had already been within a point of taking it.

The Bruins responded by winning the next three sets, 25-22, 25-21 and 25-19. The progression matters. After the 29-27 opener, SLCC did not need a fifth set or a late rescue; it controlled three straight frames to secure the 3-1 win over an Odessa team listed at 6-8.

Cameron Zajer led the first match with 22 kills, the highest individual total reported in the recap. Angelina Murase added 13 kills and Rylee Parkinson had 11, putting three Bruins in double figures. Andie Thomas added eight kills and, as SLCC noted, was efficient in the final two sets.

The distribution continued beyond the front row. Teagan Sabillon recorded 28 assists and 17 digs, while Daxlyn Robinson led the Bruins with 26 digs. At the net, Lana Hollway posted five block assists; Ellie Crosbie and Murase each had three block assists. Those official lines explain how SLCC turned a one-set deficit into a four-set win: production was not confined to a single scorer or a single phase.

A return date with Miami Dade, a different result

The evening match carried recent history. SLCC Athletics noted that the Bruins had upset Miami Dade 364 days earlier. On this occasion, Miami Dade held off Salt Lake 3-1, with set scores of 25-19, 21-25, 25-17 and 25-22.

SLCC won the second set to level the match, then stayed within three points in the fourth. Miami Dade, however, took the first, third and fourth sets to remain unbeaten. The official report describes the Sharks as the reigning national champions, so the result is best read precisely: it was a four-set loss to the country's No. 1 team, not a reason to blur the Bruins' own strong early-season body of work.

Murase led SLCC in the nightcap with 17 kills. Zajer and Parkinson each added 13, giving the Bruins three players at 13 or more kills against Miami Dade. Swayzee Mason had 45 assists, and Robinson finished with 21 digs. Crosbie, Hollway and Murase each recorded three block assists.

The Bruins hit .293 in the match, another figure published by the department. That number, paired with the three double-digit kill totals, shows that SLCC produced offense even as Miami Dade won the decisive sets. It does not change the final, but it makes the evening more specific than a ranking-versus-ranking result.

The Bruin Bash continues Saturday

Friday was only the first half of SLCC's home weekend. The Bruins' official schedule lists Eastern Wyoming College at 11:30 a.m. and Trinity Valley Community College at 4:30 p.m. on Saturday, September 12, both at Bruin Arena on the Redwood Campus in Taylorsville.

Those two matches offer an immediate next checkpoint. Eastern Wyoming is the first chance to reset after the Miami Dade loss, and Trinity Valley closes the event that evening. They are the next official dates on a schedule that keeps asking SLCC to perform against strong junior-college competition.

For now, the opening-day ledger is straightforward. SLCC rallied past Odessa with 22 kills from Zajer and three straight set wins. Then the Bruins won one set and competed through four against No. 1 Miami Dade, with Murase, Zajer and Parkinson all reaching double figures in kills. The weekend still had two matches left at publication, but Friday already supplied a useful snapshot of a No. 5 team playing a demanding home tournament.

Key facts: SLCC volleyball at the 2026 Bruin Bash, Day 1

• Record after Friday: No. 5 SLCC was 10-3 after a 3-1 win over Odessa and a 3-1 loss to No. 1 Miami Dade.
• Odessa result: SLCC won 27-29, 25-22, 25-21, 25-19 after dropping the first set.
• Odessa leaders: Cameron Zajer had 22 kills; Angelina Murase 13; Rylee Parkinson 11; Teagan Sabillon 28 assists and 17 digs; Daxlyn Robinson 26 digs.
• Miami Dade result: Miami Dade won 25-19, 21-25, 25-17, 25-22 and ended SLCC's five-match winning streak.
• Miami Dade leaders: Murase had 17 kills; Zajer and Parkinson each had 13; Swayzee Mason had 45 assists; Robinson had 21 digs.
• Team number: SLCC hit .293 against Miami Dade, according to the official recap.
• Next verified matches: Eastern Wyoming at 11:30 a.m. and Trinity Valley at 4:30 p.m. on September 12 at Bruin Arena.