Salina, Kan. – In their first of two tournaments, the Bulldog volleyball team posted a 1-3 record. The team had a very up and down weekend with a few close calls that could have easily flipped their record. As it stands, MC is now 3-4 on the season.
Game 1 – 3-0 Loss to Montana Tech
In the opening match of the tournament, McPherson took on a Montana Tech team that was the only squad to go undefeated on the weekend. The 'Dogs came out flat and fell 25-8 in the opening set. After a quick regroup, Mac hung with the Diggers in the next two but fell 25-23 and 25-21 for a 3-0 loss.
Taryn Lee led the team in kills with nine but had four errors as well; she also recorded one block assist. Maci Schlehuber was the lone Bulldog to hit double figures in assists with her 10. Emily Warner and Jocelyn Cochran each tallied seven digs to lead the team.
Game 2 – 3-0 Loss to Peru State College
Mac did a complete inverse of their opening match in terms of point scoring. The team dropped the first set 25-23 and then the second 25-21 before losing 25-10 in the final set of the match.
Kills were not abundant in day one's final contest as MC logged just 27 in the three-set match. Lexi Kite led the 'Dogs with her 7. Rhianna Smith topped the assist list with 11 and also had nine digs. Warner tied Smith for the dig title with nine.
Game 3 – 3-1 Win over Bacone College
In the team's lone win of the tourney, the Bulldogs played with a lot of fire and energy. They took the opening set 25-13, making a statement right from the start. The squad then held off a late Warrior surge to take the second 25-23. Bacone flipped the scales in the third set 25-15, taking advantage of a poor MC hitting performance. In the fourth set, the two clubs went back and forth and even took the game into extras. McPherson came out victorious 27-25.
Lee upped her attacking as she tabbed 15 kills on 30 swings while recording two block assists. Cochran put away 12 balls and also logged five service aces and one block assist for a team-high 17.5 points. Schlehuber and Smith ended the match about even with 19 and 17 assists, respectively; Smith also had two aces and nine digs. Warner tallied more digs in day two's first game than she had in all of day one as the libero racked up 22.
Game 4 – 3-2 Loss to Southwestern Christian University
In the last match of the weekend, the Lady 'Dogs came right out and smacked SCU right in the face with an outstanding 25-11 set one win. The Eagles bounced back and took down Mac 25-15 in the second set and then 25-21 in the third to take a 2-1 lead. McPherson turned up their energy in the fourth set and used it to even the match at 2-2 after their 25-18 win. In the fifth set, MC was the first to 10 but a late run by Southwestern Christian gave them just enough to take the set 15-12 giving the Lady Eagles the match.
Kite was the only Mac player to hit double-digits in kills as she had 11 on 36 attempts; the freshman also put in four service aces and had one solo block and two block assists for a season-high 17 points. Schlehuber tabbed 22 assists while Smith recorded 17. Warner pulled in 19 digs and Cochran added 15.
McPherson has their second KCAC match of the season this coming Wednesday as they head back to Salina to take on Kansas Wesleyan University on September 9th for a 7:00 p.m. (CT) match.
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McPherson College is a Kansas Collegiate Athletic Conference member school and a part of the National Association of Intercollegiate Athletics.
