Bison Volleyball Punches Ticket to PAC Championship Final
Nov. 6 – CRESTVIEW HILLS, Ky. – The Bethany College volleyball team (29-8) earned their way into the Presidents' Athletic Conference Championship Tournament Final with a 3-1 victory over Geneva College on Friday evening. The Bison provided a strong defensive front, totaling 98 digs while taking the match by set scores of 25-17, 25-27, 25-17 and 25-12.
The Bison and Golden Tornadoes played the first set tight over the opening seven points with Geneva holding a slight 7-6 advantage on a block by Olivia Test.
Trailing 12-9 in the set, the Bison would snatch control, posting a 5-0 run to force a Golden Tornado timeout. Mackenzie Lauber (Mansfield, Ohio/Madison) sparked the run with an ace and a kill to give the Green & White a 14-12 advantage.
Following the Geneva timeout, the Bison would continue to pour it on, as back-to-back points from Arielle Sanders (Maple Heights, Ohio/Maple Heights) extended the Bethany lead to four (16-12). Overall, the Bison would utilize a 12-2 run to take a commanding 21-14 lead in the set. They would then go on for the 25-17 victory. Dylana McKenzie (Hopewell, Ohio/West Muskingum) and Keili Terry (Leesburg, Va./Saint John's) combined for the final two points in the frame.
The second-seeded Golden Tornadoes came back in the second set, never trailing in the frame. Geneva ran out to a 14-8 advantage early in the set, holding a safe distance between them and the Bison until late in the game.
The Bison would show resiliency, continuing to close the gap until down just three, 24-21. An Alexis Castro (Lorain, Ohio/Lorain) kill would pull the Bison within one, and, following a set error, the teams would find themselves tied at 24-24 and 25-25. However, Geneva would capture the final two points of the set, including the winning point on a Bethany attack error, and the match was tied 1-1.
Bethany would rebound in the third set, capturing the game by a score of 25-17. Geneva opened the game on a 5-2 run before the Bison responded with a three-point run of their own to knot the game at 5-5.
The Green & White would take their first lead siDylana McKenzie set on a 6-2 run, thanks to a pair of kills by Dylana McKenzie and an ace by Lauber. Following a Geneva timeout, Sanders followed that with a kill and a Geneva attack error gave Bethany a 13-9 advantage.
Once again, the Bison would be benefactors of a big run (15-6) opening the lead to 22-13. Dakota McKenzie (Hopewell, Ohio/West Muskingum) and Sanders would fuel the run with kills and the Bison would go on for the 25-17 victory to take a 2-1 lead. TheDylana McKenzieite tallied the final three points of the match on kills by Sumayyah Muhammad (Warren, Ohio/Warren G. Harding) Dylana McKenzie and Julia Mouch (Toledo, Ohio/Sylvania Southview).
In what would prove to be the decisive fourth set, Geneva once again opened the game with a lead, running out to a 6-5 advantage. Bethany would immediately respond, putting together a 4-0 run to take a 9-6 advantage. Muhammad once again proved to be a catalyst, posting a service ace in the run.
Bethany would go on to dominate the fourDylana McKenziet, outscoring Geneva 20-6 after trailing 6-5 in the early stages. The Green & White hit a game-highDylana McKenzieurth set, including five kills by Muhammad and six from Dylana McKenzie. Bethany also tallied a trio of service aces, from Muhammad, Mouch and Allie Powell (Indianapolis, Ind./Lawrence Central).
Offensively, the Bison were led by Dylana McKenzie who tallied a game-high 18 kills while making just three errors in 31 attempts. She finished the game with a .484 hitting percentage, the best of any player on the team.
OtheDakota McKenzieders for the Green & White included Castro, Dakota McKenzie and Muhammad. Castro finished with 11 kills, while McKenzie and Muhammad added 10 and nine, respectively. Powell led Bethany with 22 assists, while Lauber posted 21.
Defensively, the Bison tallied 98 digs in the match, holding Geneva to a .102 hitting percentage in the match. The dig totaled marked the second-most in a four-set match by the GrDakota McKenzie this season. Mouch led all players with 27 digs, while freshman Reilly Parker (Irwin, Pa./Norwin) totaled 20. Dakota McKenzie finished with a double-double, adding 19 digs to her 10 kills, while Terry posted 10 digs.
With the victory, the Bison have earned the right to play in the PAC Championship Tournament Final against the host and top-seed Thomas More College, who defeated Westminster College 3-0 in the other semifinal matchup. The championship match is scheduled for Saturday, Nov. 7 at 4 p.m.
