Bison cruise past McDaniel in ECAC First Round, 3-0

Andrew Woodley, Sports Information Director

WESTMINSTER, Md. (Nov. 8) – The Bethany College volleyball team scored a 3-0 (25-22, 25-22, 25-19) win over McDaniel College in an Eastern College Athletic Conference (ECAC) Division III Tournament First Round game Wednesday night at the Gill Center.

THE MATCHUP

• Final: Bethany 3, McDaniel 0 (25-22, 25-22, 25-19 | Box Score)
  • Bethany advances to ECAC Quarterfinals where they will face Brandeis University (Mass.) on Saturday, November 11 at 5 p.m.
  • The quarterfinals, semifinals and championship rounds will be played at Frostburg State University in Frostburg, Maryland.
• Records: Bethany 23-12 | McDaniel 19-9
• Location: Gill Center | Westminster, Md.

HOW IT HAPPENED

• The Bison took a 5-4 lead early in the first set and never relinquished the lead. Bethany led by as many as six points and reached set-point at 24-19, but a trio of McDaniel points made the set interesting at 24-22. Sophomore Katie Sparks (Macedonia, Ohio/Trinity) made sure the Green Terror did not get any closer, ending the set at 25-22 with a kill.
• Bethany followed a similar path to its 25-22 win in the second set. The Bison led at 3-2 and never looked back, pushing their lead to as many as 11 at 20-9.
• McDaniel battled back with a stretch in which they took 10 of 13 points to help it pull back within two at 24-22. Junior Ashley Veryser (Cygnet, Ohio/Elmwood) ended the Green Terror threat with a set-clinching kill that pushed the Bison to a 2-0 lead in the match.
• McDaniel led the third set at 11-9, before a run by Bethany closed out the three-set sweep. The Bison went on an 11-3 run to take a 20-14 lead and held the Green Terror without a kill for the remainder of the set to win at 25-19 and advance to the ECAC Quarterfinals.

MATCH NOTES

• Sophomore Lindsey Llewellyn (Vermilion, Ohio/Norwalk St. Paul) led the team with nine kills on 21 attacks (one error) to post a team-best .381 hitting percentage.
• Freshman Jenna Scott (New Castle, Ind./Liberty Christian) recorded her 13th double-double of the season with 12 assists 11 digs in the win.
• Junior Reilly Parker (North Huntington, Pa./Norwin) led the Bison defense with 17 digs, while Sparks added 11 digs to go with six kills.

UP NEXT

• The Bison will head to Frostburg, Maryland on Saturday, November 11 to take on Brandeis (16-14) at 5 p.m. in an ECAC Quarterfinal matchup.
• Despite its record, Brandeis competes in the highly-competitive University Athletic Association (UAA) and was 16-4 against non-UAA opponents this season.
• A live stream of the match will be available here.