Bethany Volleyball Falls in ECAC Semis
Nov. 14 – PITTSBURGH, Pa. – The Bethany College volleyball team fell, 3-2, to top-seeded Carnegie Mellon in the Eastern College Athletic Conference Division III South Regional Semifinals on Saturday morning. The Bison finished the 2015 campaign with a 30-10 record, including a 15-3 mark in the Presidents' Athletic Conference.
The Bison battled early as the first set went back and forth. Carnegie Mellon showed why they earned the top seed in the tournament, edging the Bison, 25-22, to take a 1-0 lead.
Bethany, however, remained calm and poised as they have done so often this season, fighting back to take game two, 25-21. The Bison totaled 18 kills in the second set with just four errors and a .341 hitting percentage.
The two teams traded points early in the third set. The Tartans' offense proved to be the difference, as they collected 16 kills and hit .306 to pick up game three, 25-20.
With their season on the line, Bethany displayed the resiliency that led them to 30 total wins in 2015. Junior Dylana McKenzie (Hopewell, Ohio/West Muskingum) led the Green & White with 6 kills in game four, and the Bison forced a fifth set with a, 25-20, victory.
In the fifth game, the Tartans used an early 4-0 run to take a three-point advantage, 6-3. The Bison rallied to make it a close game late, before ultimately falling, 15-9. Arielle Sanders (Maple Heights, Ohio/Maple Heights) collected three kills in the final set.
Defensively, freshman Reilly Parker (Irwin, Pa./Norwin) led the way with 42 digs. Senior Julia Mouch (Toledo, Ohio/Sylvania Southview) recorded 19 digs in her last match as Bison. Bethany finished with 8.0 total blocks.
Offensively, Bethany had four different players record double-digit kills. Dylana McKenize amassed 15 kills, Sanders and Dakota McKenzie (Hopewell, Ohio/West Muskingum) each had 13, and Alexis Castro (Lorain, Ohio/Lorain) recorded 10 kills.
Senior Mackenzie Lauber (Mansfield, Ohio/Madison Mansfield) had another solid showing, collecting 29 assists to go along with three kills and seven digs. Junior setter Allie Powell (Indianapolis, Ind./Lawrence Central) added 20 assists of her own.
Bethany saw a tremendous amount of success this season, both individually and collectively. The Bison had six players placed on All-PAC teams, as well as reached the 30-win plateau for the fourth time in five seasons.
