Elsah, ILL. -- The volleyball team hosted the Blackburn Beavers tonight, and the home crowd saw a lot of good team play and a little too much sloppy play, but they did see Principia win in three straight games, and that was a season sweep!
The inside scoop isn't quite as fairy tale like though. Blackburn jumped ahead in the very beginning of the match as Principia committed too many errors and lacked ball control too. Coach Sprague could feel the team digging deep to right the ship and didn't call a timeout even when it was 4-9, and the team tightened up their game and movement and pulled into the lead behind some nice serving from
Mia Gill. There was no turning back and Principia controlled the rest of the game to the tune of 25-15. Game two was all Principia beginning with 4 aces from
Sophia Hathaway. The back row was sharp and really pushed the tempo leading into a vibrant Panther offense and ultimately to a 25-16 win. Game three got off to a 6-0 start behind
Amanda Roberts serving, and the Panthers kept in solid control until about halfway through the game. Blackburn did not quit, and they were making it harder for the Panthers to kill the ball, and Principia got impatient and a bit greedy, which equaled a predictable offense….which Blackburn defended well and the tables turned. The Panthers had more than a handful of opportunities to nail this match shut, but didn't. Kudos to the Beavers for their persistence and grit, and for making Principia take care of their side of the court and earn the win. The air was tense at 24-24, 26-26, 28-28, and then
Sophia Hathaway rotated into the front row and executed her wizardry with just what the Panthers needed to take game three 30-28.
Both teams had about 13% error, but the real difference makers were Principia killing 28% of their swings vs Blackburn's 19%, and Principia's 10 aces compared to Blackburn's 3. It was another balanced night with
Noelle Shoemake,
Hayden Warner,
Sophia Hathaway and
Jessica Bayne all contributing kills, and Gill, Shoemake,
Devon Marunde, and
Nikki Matters digging a lot of balls.
Principia hosts Spalding University Friday night at 6pm, and also hosts Knox College and Hannibal LaGrange Saturday at 11 and 3. We'd love to have you here!
