SIOUX CITY, Iowa (MacBulldogs.com) — The McPherson College Bulldogs swept the No. 22-ranked Valley City State University Vikings Friday (Aug. 30) before dropping their first match of the season 3-1 to ninth-ranked University of Jamestown in Sioux City, Iowa.
GAME ONE – McPherson 3, Valley City State 0
The Bulldogs fell behind early in the opening set, trailing 12-5 forcing a timeout. But from there, MC scored nine of the next 11 points to draw even at 14-14.
Three straight points by the Bulldogs, including an ace by Brooke McHale and a kill by Luisina Sandron made it a 20-17 MC lead. Then, the Bulldogs finished things off scoring five of the final six points to take a 1-0 advantage.
That momentum carried over into the second frame, winning six straight points after a Viking kill by Macy Fridgen. That spurt included kills by Enya Fierens and McHale. MC cruised to a 2-0 lead, thanks to 12 kills and just one error in the second set.
The Bulldogs held the Vikings to just a .098 hitting percentage, and forced them into eight errors in the middle frame.
In the third set, once again the Bulldogs jumped out to an early advantage, after kills by Hadley Waldren and McHale and an ace by Katelyn Brogan gave them a 6-2 edge. However, four straight points by the Vikings leveled the score at 6-6.
The third set was back-and-forth from there, the Bulldogs broke a 19-19 gridlock with six of the final nine points, including a pair of kills by Fierens sealed the victory.
Waldren led a balanced Bulldog offense with 12 kills, while Fierens added nine kills. Raegan Murphy finished with 16 assists and Brogan added 14 assists.
Defensively, the Bulldogs finished with five blocks, thanks to Fierens and Waldren each recording a pair of solo blocks.
GAME TWO – Jamestown 3, McPherson 1
The nightcap saw the Bulldogs falling for the first time this season, and snapping a 15-set winning streak.
After Jamestown grabbed a 1-0 lead following a hard-fought opening set, the Bulldogs answered taking a 9-3 advantage in the second frame. From there, the Bulldogs cruised to a 25-17 set win to level the match score.
The third set was once again a slugfest with the Bulldogs taking a slight 14-11 lead, but the Jimmies came out victorious 25-23 to lead 2-1.
Jamestown finished off the match with a 25-18 win in the fourth set.
Katie Warden finished with a team-high nine kills, while McHale and Daniela Jimenez added eight kills. Celestina Retumban had 18 digs, and Waldren finished with five blocks.
The Bulldogs open day two early on Saturday (Aug. 31) taking on (RV) Saint Ambrose University at 9:00 a.m. before squaring off against (RV) Dakota State at 2 p.m.
