Oct. 2 – BETHANY, W. Va. – The Bethany College volleyball team (12-6, 6-1) won their fourth-straight Presidents' Athletic Conference matchup, as they took down the Golden Tornadoes of Geneva College, 3-2, on Thursday evening in the Hummel Field House. The Bison won the match by scores of 25-18, 22-25, 25-21, 17-25, 15-10.
In game number one, the Bison looked to be in complete control as they never trailed in the opening frame. The Golden Tornadoes hung around until the Bison pushed their lead to as many as seven, using a four-point run fueled by an Alexis Castro (Lorain, Ohio/Lorain) kill, to take a 15-8 advantage. The lead would then fluctuate between six and seven points, before Dylana McKenzie (Hopewell, Ohio/West Muskingum) finished off the opening game with a kill to give the Bison the 25-18 win.
Game two was a much tighter affair that saw the teams deadlocked on five separate occasions. Bethany pushed the advantage out to a 14-9 lead, using a five-point run. Arielle Sanders (Maple Heights, Ohio/Maple Heights) had two kills in the run, and the Bison had their largest lead of the game. However, Geneva would go on to outscore the Bison 16-8 the rest of the way to take game two, 25-22.
Game three was once again tight, as neither team could grab more than a three point advantage until late in the set. Geneva pushed their led to its largest of the game when Marissa Naples scored an ace to give the Golden Tornadoes an 18-15 lead. However, the Bison would answer with a 6-0 run of their own. After kills from Lynsie Mandt (Columbus, Ohio/Worthington Kilbourne) and McKenzie, Geneva committed two unforced errors, giving the Bison the 19-18 lead. Sanders would then add a kill, and McKenzie would collect her fourth kill of the set to give the Green & White the 21-18 advantage. Bethany would go on to take game three 25-21.
Geneva would find a way to fight back yet again in game number four. The teams played it close through most the set with Geneva holding a one-point advantage (18-17) after the Bison cut into the lead with a block from Sanders and Mackenzie Lauber (Mansfield, Ohio/Madison Mansfield). Geneva would then outscore Bethany 7-1 over the final eight points to win game four, 25-17, and force a decisive game five.
Bethany jumped out to a 4-1 advantage in the final set, getting a kill from Castro and an ace from Lauber. After a timeout by the Geneva coach, the Golden Tornadoes turned it around, scoring the next five points and forcing head coach Courtney Kline to call a timeout of her own, trailing 6-4. Out of the timeout, the Bison would go on a responding run, getting kills from four different players (Dakota McKenzie, Dylana McKenzie, Mandt and Sanders) in the midst of a 6-1 swing, to take a 10-7 lead. The Bison would not relinquish the advantage, eventually getting the match-winning point on Dylana McKenzie's 16th kill of the night. The kill gave the Bison the 15-10 win in game five, and the 3-2 win in the match.
Offensively, the Bison were led by Dylana McKenzie's 16-kill effort. Dakota McKenzie chipped in with 11 kills of her own, while Mandt recorded her third double-double of the season, finishing with 10 kills and 10 digs. Sanders notched eight kills in the win, while Castro finished with seven. Lauber did a nice job distributing the ball to all sides of the floor and finished with 43 assists.
Defensively, the Bison held the Golden Tornadoes to a .117 hitting percentage. Julia Mouch (Toledo, Ohio/Sylvania Southview) finished with 23 digs, her seventh game of the season with 20+. Mandt added 10 while Dylana McKenzie finished with nine. Lauber, Kelly Becquet (Finleyville, Pa./Ringgold) and Haley Santymire (Clifton, Va./Centreville) each totaled six in the total team defensive effort. The Bison also finished the day with seven total blocks. Sanders posted four block assists, while Castro and Dylana McKenzie each finished with three.
Bethany will be back in action on Saturday, October 4, when they travel to Latrobe, Pa. for a tri-match at Saint Vincent College. The Bison will first compete against Waynesburg University at 1:00 p.m. before taking on the host Bearcats at 3:00 p.m.
