Sophomore Kennedy Hoffman’s match-opening kill set the tone for Trinity Lutheran’s season-opener at the Bollinger Athletic Complex.

Trinity started its 2018 volleyball campaign on the right note Monday by sweeping Henryville 25-14, 25-12, 25-20.

In the opening set, the Cougars — ranked No. 7 for Class A in the Indiana High School Volleyball Coaches Association’s preseason polls — built an 8-3 lead before the Hornets scored five straight points to tie it.

The teams stayed close until the Cougars (1-0) used a 5-0 run to distance themselves at 15-10. On serves from freshman Paige Lawrence, the Cougars then closed the set on another 5-0 run to go up 1-0 in the match.

Back-to-back kills from junior Hannah Sabotin put the Cougars up 4-3 in the second set before sophomore Elly Carter pushed a pair of aces across the net to give Trinity an 8-3 advantage.

A kill and ace by sophomore Bailey Reynolds ignited a 6-0 Trinity scoring streak, putting the Cougars up 19-6.

Trinity held onto the double-digit lead, and a hit from Hoffman sealed the set for the Cougars.

After exchanging many of the first nine points to start the third set, Hoffman had an ace and sophomore Sydney Jaynes added a kill to put the Cougars on top. The Hornets used a pair of mini rallies to tie the game at 11 before taking the lead at 17-16. Trinity then used a 5-0 run to help seal the deal.

“It was interesting,” Cougars coach Faith Wilder-Newland said. “I made a couple of mistakes. We had a few rotational errors. That’s understandable because we’re missing our middle, and we thought (Jaynes) might not play tonight. The lineup we had worked on, we didn’t need it. It turned out all right.

“We played well at times. Outside of the rotations, there were some easy balls that we need to take.”

Sabotin led the Cougars’ attack, going 17-for-17 with 14 kills. Jaynes added seven kills, and Hoffman totaled four.

In serving, Lawrence topped Trinity with five aces, and Reynolds had four. Reynolds also led the team with 28 assists on the night.

The win also marked the first for Wilder-Newland.

“I’m thankful for all of the parents that are all supportive. Gregg (Greathouse, junior varsity coach) keeps me in line. It takes a village,” Wilder-Newland joked.

The Cougars will travel to play Class 4A No. 2 Providence tonight.

Wilder-Newland said she looks forward to the challenge for the team early in the season.

“It’s awesome. We want to play the best…Otherwise, we won’t be the best,” she said. “We want to go out and play as hard as we can, one point at a time. We’re going to compete and try to win.”