Pair of wins sets Bethel volleyball for potential KCAC title game
The Threshers won matches against Avila and Ottawa.
The Bethel volleyball team took a trip to Kansas City and took home two wins this past weekend, beating Avila in four sets on Friday and 23rd-ranked Ottawa in five sets on Saturday.
The Threshers had trouble getting their offense going in both games, and it’s a testament to the strength of the team that they were able to come out of the weekend with two more in the win column, including a big win against Ottawa, a team the Threshers hadn’t beaten in the previous 18 matches.
“Probably the thing I'm most proud of was our ability to finish,” said head coach Adriana Leake. “On Friday versus Avila, we did not play well at all. We couldn't get our offense running and we made tons of errors, but we were able to finish it out with a win. … Saturday versus Ottawa, we started the match in a similar way, lots of errors and not playing a super clean game. As the match went on we kept pushing and it paid off in the end.”
The Threshers have been in many more high-pressure games the past few weeks of the season, taking on other top teams in the conference, and Leake has been pleased with how her team has handled it.
“Our serving and serve receive was probably the biggest difference maker over the past two games which is something we work on a ton,” said Leake. “I’m most happy with how we handled pressure at the end of the game. The nerves and intensity were there, but we handled it with tons of confidence.”
Bethel’s confidence continues to grow. A big reason for this is the play of three seniors who consistently lead the Threshers in major statistical categories. Outside hitter Kylah Carter led the team in kills over the two matches with 26 total while setter Kaity Shima led the team with 59 assists. One of Bethel’s most experienced players, defensive specialist Katey Wilhelm, led the team with 47 digs over the weekend as well.
While these three seniors have been strong pillars of support for the Threshers, there is also a multitude of players who are always ready to step up. This weekend, that person for the Threshers was sophomore outside hitter Landree Merriman. Merriman led the team in kills against Avila with 12 and was second on the team over the weekend with 22 total kills.
Merriman is just the latest in a long line of players to step up this year for the Threshers, who are tied for first in the KCAC with a conference record of 11-1 and are in a position to possibly win the KCAC title for the first time in 15 years.
“We'll be fine-tuning some aspects of our game that will help us perform better,” said Leake. “Most importantly we'll be revisiting our values and goals making sure we're all on the same page as we enter these critical last weeks.”
The Threshers take on Oklahoma Wesleyan on Saturday in Thresher Gym at 3 p.m. for Senior Day. With a win and Kansas Wesleyan loss to Evangel at 1 p.m., Bethel wins the conference outright and clinches an NAIA tournament berth.
If both the Coyotes and Threshers win, Kansas Wesleyan takes the regular-season NAIA tournament automatic qualifier via head-to-head tiebreaker.