Thresher volleyball sweeps Bethany to open conference season
Thresher volleyball sweeps Bethany to open conference season
Bethel held the Swedes to a hitting percentage of .018 in their sweep on Wednesday night to start KCAC play 1-0
LINDSBORG — The Bethel volleyball team swept Bethany College in dominant fashion in their first conference action of the season.
Bethel held Bethany to to a hitting percentage of .018 while hitting a solid percentage of .219. Bethel’s rigid defense allowed them to put together a strong offensive performance, along with the Thresher’s great serving and receiving, which has been a focus of head coach Adriana Leake’s so far this season.
“Our serve receive and defense was really great so we were able to be in system the majority of the game,” said coach Leake. “We have such a balanced attack so we're just really tough to defend when we're in a system like that because anyone could get the ball & anyone can score.”
The Threshers had four players have seven or more kills. Senior Kylah Carter led the team with nine, and three players each had seven: Cameron Offerle, Darla Crow, and Laci Ownbey. 23 of the Thresher’s kills were assisted on by setter Mia Roman. Three players also had two or more service aces in the match. Offerle aced four times, while seniors Maddie Chupp and Jordan Boone also added two apiece.
Along with this offensive attack, the Thresher’s defense also had a strong game against Bethany.
“Our defense really stepped up and allowed very few balls to hit the floor,” said Chupp, from Goshen, Ind. “Our serve receive was solid which allowed Mia to set any of our hitters, and our block coverage was strong which allowed our hitters to have second chances… All of our hitters can put the ball away at any time and that is a difficult offense for anyone to defend. Our hitters also did a good job of moving around and calling for different sets which kept Bethany's defense guessing.”
Chupp led the Threshers with 15 digs on the game, with Offerle, Roman, and Abby Koontz also eclipsing the double digit threshold. Darla Crow was the leader at the net, with four blocks.
The Thresher’s are happy with their big conference win, but are focused on enjoying the season one game at a time.
“We made it a priority since the beginning of the season not to get caught up in worrying about the expectations of others,” said Chupp. “We know how good we are and that is all that matters. Our goals are not centered around our record or our ranking, we know that if we compete at the level we are capable of, the wins will come.”
The Threshers travel to Wichita to take on Friends on Saturday at 2 p.m., looking to extend their win streak to five games in a row.