NORTH NEWTON, Kan. (macbulldogs.com) --- The McPherson College volleyball team posted its third straight sweep with a 25-13, 25-18, 25-21 victory over Bethel College Friday night at Thresher Gymnasium.
After conceding the first point of the match to the home side, McPherson (10-5, 6-3 Kansas Collegiate Athletic Conference) rattled off five straight points to grab a lead they would not relinquish. Bethel (3-11, 1-8 KCAC) rallied for the next three points to get within one, but the Bulldogs began to pull away. The visitors used a 9-1 run, primarily on the serves of
Morgan Little (Las Vegas, Nev., Hutchinson CC) and
Rianne Richard (Wichita, Kan., Neosho CC) to grab a 23-10 lead. The Threshers countered for three straight points to get the lead back to 10, but McPherson got the side-out on a kill by
Lexi Kite (Thornton, Colo., Prairie View HS), then closed out the set when
Mady Woog (Highlands Ranch, Colo., Mountain Vista HS) and
Bree Wallace (Wichita, Kan., East HS) combined to stuff an attack by Abby Kurtzer.
In the second set, the Bulldogs grabbed a quick 3-0 lead, only to see the Threshers climb back into the set and tie the score at 10-10. From there, McPherson scored nine of the next 11 to build a 19-12 cushion. Bethel would get no closer than six the rest of the way.
The Threshers seemed to have the upper hand early in the third set, jumping out to a 4-1 lead and playing from ahead. The Bulldogs rallied, though, using a Bree Wallace kill and a
Reven Bradbury (Highlands Ranch, Colo., Rock Canyon HS) service ace to ignite a 10-3 run that turned an 11-9 deficit into a 19-14 lead and put Bethel back on its heels. Bradbury finished with a pair of aces. After a Kite kill gave McPherson match point at 24-18, the Threshers took the next three rallies before
Elizabeth Williams (Grand Prairie, Texas, Mansfield Lake Ridge HS) ended the match with a kill to conclude a marathon rally between the sides.
Kite led the Bulldogs with a 12-kill, 15-dig double-double. She also assisted on a block.
Devrie Sombers (Colorado Springs, Colo., Pinecreek HS) added eight kills, an ace and a block assist, while Wallace had five kills and three blocks - including McPherson's lone solo stuff.
Jamie Siess (Tecumseh, Kan., Shawnee Heights HS) chipped in with 16 digs and Richard had six digs and a pair of service aces. The Bulldogs, who used four setters on the night, were led in assists by Little with 15.
Kaitlyn Heinis (Oviedo, Fla., Paul J. Hagerty HS) and
Rhianna Smith (McPherson, Kan., McPherson HS) had six apiece, while
Morgan Abbott (Decatur, Texas, Boyd HS) had five.
The Threshers, who finished with just 23 kills overall, were led by nine from Kurtzer. Kelsie Anderson just missed a double-double with 10 assists and nine digs, while Avery Myatt added 12 assists, seven digs and a pair of kills. Rachel Bustillos had a match-high 18 digs and Taylor Buessing added eight.
"Tonight was a sweet sweep because I had the chance to put some players in off the bench to see what they would do in pressure situations," said head coach Jessica Cleveland. "Kite was focused and kept our team stable."
The Bulldogs, who have the remainder of the weekend off from competition, return to the court at 7 p.m. Wednesday evening for a KCAC home match against Southwestern College before facing Saint Mary, York, Kansas Wesleyan and Ottawa Oct. 13-14 at the KCAC Fall Fling in Hutchinson.
