OMAHA, Neb. – SIUE volleyball made a big splash on day one of the Omaha Classic with victories over Southern Utah and tournament host Omaha.

SIUE, 2-3, defeated Southern Utah early in the day for its first win of the season 22-25, 25-12, 25-13, 25-22. In the feature match of the evening, the Cougars dispatched the Mavericks 26-24, 25-21, 25-13.

SIUE Head Coach Leah Johnson said the Cougars got "feisty" after losing its first set of the day.

"That mindset really paid off for us," said Johnson. "The difference was us making up our minds that we could play clean volleyball regardless of what was going on over on the other side of the net."

Hilary Trevino was the big hitter of the day for the Cougars. The outside hitter recorded back-to-back double-digit kills for the first time in her career with 15 against Southern Utah and 12 against Omaha.

"Her goal going into the week was to improve her hitting efficiency," said Johnson. Trevino kept more points in play and recorded the most efficient match of her career at .414 (15 kills, three errors) against Southern Utah.

Mallory Mangun posted double-doubles in both matches. The freshman setter finished with a career-best 42 assists in the Southern Utah win.

"Mallory did a great job of distributing the ball. She has good court sense," said Johnson.

Johnson added that the defensive trio of Chelsea Colclasure, Haley Norris, and Kasey Schumacher were steady on the back row. "They worked well together in their two rotations," Johnson noted.

Cori Harris also finished with a double-double against Southern Utah. Her 11 kills and 15 digs made her effective on offense and defense.

"She was the court stabilizer for us," Johnson said.

SIUE has one more match left in the Omaha Classic. The Cougars take on Bradley in a 1 p.m. match Saturday.