Broncos Defeat #24 Coyotes and Owls to go 4-0 in Hastings Classic
| Final | 1 | 2 | 3 | T | |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
|
Hastings (5-1, 0-0) | 25 | 25 | 25 | 3 |
|
William Woods (MO) (3-4, 0-0) | 23 | 19 | 19 | 0 |
| Final | 1 | 2 | 3 | 4 | 5 | T | |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
|
Kansas Wesleyan (2-1, 0-0) | 25 | 22 | 21 | 25 | 13 | 2 |
|
Hastings (4-1, 0-0) | 19 | 25 | 25 | 14 | 15 | 3 |
(Hastings, Nebraska) - On day two of the Hastings College Classic, Hastings snagged a pair of wins, including a thrilling five-set match that featured lots of twists and turns against the defending KCAC champions, the #24 Kansas Wesleyan Coyotes, 3-2 (19-25, 25-22, 25-21, 14-25, 15-13). They followed it up with a straight-set win against William Woods (25-23, 25-19, 25-19).
In the first game of the day, the Coyotes started the match on fire, jumping out to a 17-10 lead. That run proved to be the difference maker, as they took the first set 25-19.
Hastings flipped the script in the second period as they grabbed a commanding 16-11. In a match full of runs, Kansas Wesleyan countered with five straight points to tie it up. Hastings would eventually take the second set 25-22 after a kill from freshman Makenna Sutter. Freshman Mikah O'Neill and sophomore Ilse Benne led the Broncos with five kills in the period.
The Broncos took the third set, pulling away late to take it 25-21. The period featured very few runs as both teams fought to gain the pivotal set, as junior Alexis Pontine's 12 assists and O'Neill's seven kills lifted the Broncos to the 2-1 set advantage. The Coyotes started strong in set four and never wavered, taking set four 25-14 to set up the winner-take-all fifth set.
Kansas Wesleyan appeared to have control of the game, taking a 10-6 lead and forcing a Bronco timeout. Hastings, however, responded in a huge way, winning the next eight points to take a 14-10 lead. Sutter had kills in the first three points of the run and added two more in that stretch. The Coyotes would get within one, 14-13, but junior Kaitlin Thiebauth secured the win with a kill, assisted by Pontine.
O'Neill and Benne led the team in kills with 17 each, Pontine had 42 assists, and senior Miriam Miller had 25 digs.
Against William Woods, the Broncos appeared to have control with a 16-13 lead in the first set, but the Owls took the next four points to get back in the set and took a 23-21 lead at one point. A couple of Owl errors gave Hastings the momentum they needed to win the next four points and the set, 25-23.
With Hastings leading 20-18 in set two, O'Neill hit back-to-back kills from Pontine. A kill from Benne and a couple of attacking errors from the Owls led to the Broncos taking the set 25-19, ending the period on a 6-1 run. O'Neill and Benne had five kills and Pontine had 17 assists in the set.
In the third set, with the Broncos leading 16-14, Hastings won four of the next five points to take a 20-15 lead. While William Woods won the next three, the Broncos would respond with five of the next six points to seal the win, 25-19 in set three.
Benne's seven kills in the third set gave her a game-high 14 kills. Pontine and Miller also each had a game-highs with 40 assists and 24 digs, respectively.
Up next, Hastings will host Doane in their conference opener on Wednesday, September 4 at 7:30pm in Lynn Farrell Arena.
