Posted: Sep 19, 2015
Bison Volleyball Drops a Pair to AVCA Top-25 Teams
Sept. 19 – NEWPORT NEWS, Va. – The Bethany College volleyball team (9-5) competed against top competition on Saturday afternoon as they took two teams ranked in the American Volleyball Coaches' Association Top-25 in the second day of the Christopher Newport Tournament. The Bison first fell to #4 Juniata College, 3-1, before dropping a 3-0 decision to #3 Christopher Newport.
In the opening match of the day, the Green & White hung tough against the Nation's fourth-ranked team, dropping the match to the Eagles by a 3-1 score. Juniata won set one, 25-21 and set two, 28-26, with the Bison holding leads in both matches. Bethany responded by taking game three, 25-22, before falling in the fourth set, 25-17.
In the opening set against the Eagles, Bethany ran out to a 17-11 lead, using a 6-1 run after leading by just one, 11-10. In the five-point swing, junior Dakota McKenzie (Hopewell, Ohio/West Muskingum) tallied three kills, while freshman Reilly Parker (Irwin, Pa./Norwin) tallied a pair of aces.
Bethany still held a five-point advantage (19-14) late in the first game, before Juniata went on an 8-2 run to take a 22-21 advantage. From there the Eagles held on to win the opening set 25-22.
In set two, the Bison refused to quit, staying neck-and-neck with the Eagles every step of the way. The Bison never led in the second set until taking a one point advantage, 26-25 on a kill by Dakota McKenzie. The Green & White never trailed by more than three points in the game, and fought back to tie the game six times, before eventually overtaking Juniata on the kill. From there, however, Juniata would score the final three points, and the Bison would find themselves down 2-0.
Undeterred from the first two sets, the Green & White would rally to take set three, 25-22. Bethany and Juniata were once again deadlocked late in the match, knotted at 22. This time, it was the Bison that had the answer as Dakota McKenzie broke the tie with a kill and followed it with a service ace. Dylana McKenzie (Hopewell, Ohio/West Muskingum) then finished off the run with a kill, giving the Bison new life and the set three win, 25-22.
However, Juniata would have the answer in set four, taking the game by a 25-17 tally, and the match by a 3-1 score.
In the game, Dakota McKenzie led the offense with 16 kills, while Arielle Sanders (Maple Heights, Ohio/Maple Heights) finished with 11. Alexis Castro (Lorain, Ohio/Lorain) added seven while Dylana McKenzie finished with eight. Mackenzie Lauber (Mansfield, Ohio/Madison) was the assist leader in the match, finishing with 27.
Defensively, Bethany tallied 62 digs in the four-set match, led by Parker's 20. Julia Mouch (Toledo, Ohio/Sylvania Southview) and Dakota McKenzie each finished with 11.
In the second matchup against the host Captains, the Bison found themselves up against the third-ranked team in all of Division III. Bethany put up a fight against Christopher Newport, but eventuall fell by a 3-0 score.
The host Captains took a 25-17 win in the first set, before winning set two, 25-22. The third set was the toughest as the Bison would not go away quietly, eventually falling, 28-26.
In the second match, Castro led the Bison with nine kills on just 19 attempts. A figure of consistency, Castro finished the match without a single error, hitting .474 in the game. Dylana McKenzie tallied six kills, while Dakota McKenzie and Sanders tallied five, each.
Freshman Emily Duke (North Ridgeville, Ohio/North Ridgeville) led the Green & White in assists (16), while Parker was once again the digs leader with 14. Mouch also added double-digit digs, finishing with 11.
The Green & White will be back in action on Tuesday, September 22 when they travel to New Wilmington, Pa. for a tri-match at Westminster College. The Bison will take on Thiel College in a conference matchup at 6 p.m. before playing the host Titans at 8 p.m.
