Posted: Sep 09, 2016
Bison Battle in First Day of Marcia French Tournament
Bethany
(2-4)
1
Baldwin Wallace
(7-0)
3
| Final | 1 | 2 | 3 | 4 | T | |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
|
Bethany (2-4) | 28 | 14 | 20 | 18 | 1 |
|
Baldwin Wallace (7-0) | 26 | 25 | 25 | 25 | 3 |
Sept. 9 - BEREA, Ohio - The Bethany women's volleyball team lost their first two matches in the Marcia French Tournament hosted by Baldwin Wallace. They fell to Mount Union in the first game 3-1, before dropping their match with the hosts, 3-1, to end the night.
In the opening match of the night, the Bison and Purple Raiders set a strong tone.
Late in the set, Bethany led 25-24 before Mount Union picked up three consecutive points to take the first set 27-25; however, the score differential was never higher than two points the entire set.
Senior Dakota McKenzie (Hopewell, Ohio /West Muskingum) got things started offensively for The Green and White, with seven kills in the opener.
The second set was more favorable for the Bison, who took an early 7-3 lead with help from the entire offense. After a small run by the Purple Raiders to put them within one at 8-7, Bethany would never let it get any closer, leading by at least five the rest of the way.
Mount Union would start the third set much like Bethany did a set earlier, getting out to a 7-1 lead. Upon trailing by 10 at 19-9, the Bison started to stomp their way back. Senior Dylana McKenzie (Hopewell, Ohio /West Muskingum) got four consecutive kills to draw Bethany within one point at 24-23 before a Purple Raider kill would end the Green and White comeback to take the third set.
The fourth and final set was much like the first. Early in the set, it was back-and-forth for both teams, with the score at 9-8, in favor of Mount Union. The battle continued into the set with Bethany never falling behind by more than five.
With the Purple Raiders leading 21-18, they had a service error which seemed to fuel the Bison. Senior Alexis Castro (Lorain, Ohio/Lorain) picked up a pair of kills to put the tally at 23-22 Mount Union. However, Bethany could never get the lead late in the match. They would lose the set 26-24, making it the third set of four to end by two points.
In the loss, Dylana and Dakota McKenzie each recorded 17 and 16 kills, respectively. Allie Powell (Indianapolis, Ind. /Lawrence Central) steered the offense with 50 assists, a four-set career high for the senior. Freshman Maggie Merren (Oregon, Ohio / Clay) led the team with 25 digs.
In the second match, Bethany faced off against the host Baldwin Wallace Yellow Jackets.
The Bison couldn't get enough of the close action that they faced in their first match, defeating the hosts 28-26 in set number one.
With the set tied at 16, Bethany was looking to take the lead. After some back-and-forth rallies, the Bison found themselves up 24-23. After another tie at 26, Bethany got a kill from Dakota McKenzie and an attack error to take the first set, 28-26.
In the second set, the match was closely contested yet again. With the score notched at 13-12 in favor of the hosts, Baldwin Wallace went on a 12-2 run to capture the second set.
In the swing set, Bethany use a balanced attack to get out to an early 9-4 lead. BW would get the score to tie at 16 before going on a 9-4 run of their own to take down the set and go up 2-1.
The fourth set saw the Bison looking to take advantage of any Yellow Jacket mistake. Down 8-5, The Green and White rattled off five consecutive points to go up 10-8, thanks in part to two kills by Dylana McKenzie.
From there, BW went on an 11-5 run and Bethany never moved any closer than three points for the rest of the match.
For the day, Dylana McKenzie led all Bison with 28 kills with Dakota not far behind with 26. Senior Arielle Sanders (Maple Heights, Ohio) also tallied 22 kills. Allie Powell was in the driver's seat for the offense on Friday, leading Bethany with 93 assists, including 43 in the Baldwin-Wallace match.
On defense, Merren tallied 50 digs, with sophomore Reilly Parker (Irwin, Pa./Norwin) recording 19.
With the setbacks, Bethany falls to 2-4 on the year. They are back in action early Saturday morning for the tournament when they take on Denison at 11 am followed by a match with Case Western at 1 pm.
