McPHERSON, Kan. (macbulldogs.com) ---
Riley Bradbury (Highlands Ranch, Colo., Rock Canyon HS) had a match-high 15 kills and five digs to lead McPherson College to a dominant 25-14, 25-20, 25-16 victory over York College in a Kansas Collegiate Athletic Conference (KCAC) match Wednesday night at the Sport Center.
The Bulldogs (6-3, 2-1 KCAC) sprinted out to a 6-1 lead in the first set and didn't look back. McPherson took a 22-12 lead on a kill by
Samantha Buer (Frisco, Colo., Summit HS). York (1-12, 0-4 KCAC) responded with consecutive points on a pair of Bulldogs errors, but the hosts closed out the frame with a solo block by
Devrie Sombers (Colorado Springs, Colo., Pinecreek HS) and a kill by
Lexi Kite (Thornton, Colo., Prairie View HS) before finishing with a combo block by Sombers and
Bree Wallace (Wichita, Kan., East HS). Bradbury and Kite had five kills apiece in the frame with Kite adding six digs.
Jamie Siess (Tecumseh, Kan., Shawnee Heights HS) and
Rianne Richard (Wichita, Kan., Neosho CC) also had six digs in the first set, while
Morgan Little (Las Vegas, Nev., Hutchinson CC) and
Kaitlyn Heinis (Oviedo, Fla., Paul J. Hagerty HS) each had seven assists.
The second set started out much more evenly than the first with the Panthers tying the frame at 9-9 on an attack error by Wallace. The Bulldogs followed with a 15-3 run, getting to set point at 24-12 on a Bradbury service ace. York would not back down, however, burning off eight straight set points before McPherson was finally able to connect when Buer slammed home an attack to give the Bulldogs the set.
The Panthers held a pair of brief leads early in the third set, but the Bulldogs used a 7-1 run to take a 14-8 lead. Sombers had three kills during the stretch. York cut the lead to just three at 15-12 but could get no closer. Sombers ended the match with a huge kill off the set of
Morgan Abbott (Decatur, Texas, Boyd HS).
McPherson posted a .320 attack percentage in the match, including a .368 mark in the first set and a blistering .452 mark in the third set. Bradbury led all players with 15 kills, while
Leia Seiler (Fort Lupton, Colo., Fort Lupton HS) added nine. Buer, Sombers and Kite - who played in only the opening set - all finished with five kills. Sombers also had five blocks, including two solo put-backs. Little (19) and Heinis (18) accounted for 37 of the Bulldogs' 41 assists, while Siess (12) and Richard (10) each posted double-digits in digs.
Molly Little had a team-high seven kills to lead York, while Rose Tafaoialii added six and Taylor O'Brien five. Makenzi Kissman had four kills and a team-high eight digs, and Jolene Herzog posted 14 assists and four digs.
The victory was No. 100 in the collegiate coaching career of McPherson head coach
Jessica Cleveland. Cleveland, in her second season, is 27-15 guiding the Bulldogs to go along with 73 wins in five seasons as head coach at Hesston College.
"We finally found our flow this weekend in Omaha and got to execute it against York," said Cleveland. "We were aggressive with attacks from Bradbury and Seiler carrying the team and giving us a chance to rest Kite and Woog for Saturday's match against Ottawa. It was fun to see the team have a confident win after Saint Mary and to pick up my 100th career win."
The Bulldogs return to the court Saturday afternoon when they host Ottawa University in another KCAC matchup. The Braves are receiving votes in the most recent NAIA Volleyball Coaches' Top 25. First serve for the varsity match is slated for 3 p.m.
