Unified Effort Leads to Emmaus Victory

DUBUQUE, IA – The Lady Eagles prevailed in a tough all-Iowa battle, taking Faith Baptist in straight sets at home to avenge their earlier 1-3 loss.

The two teams fought closely in set one, until Vivienne Yates came to the serving line with the score 13-10.  Emmaus generated a five point run, including 2 aces, and drove the score to 18-10.  The Lady Eagles continued to lead and pushed to set point (24-17), but had trouble closing as Faith responded with a run of their own.  Liz Heathcote put the final ball down, and Emmaus won the set 25-21.

Set two was more of the same, as each team battled for every point.  With the score 18-16, Molly Skoglund led an Emmaus run of five points to make it 23-16.  Faith once again responded in kind, with Emily Wolfe leading the charge for a five point run  to pull Faith within one point (23-24) -  but Emmaus was able to escape with a 25-23 victory.

Set three continued the pattern of both teams playing in streaks, with Emmaus once again leading early.  Hannah Bell's serving gave the Lady Eagles a 5-0 lead, and Alli Howard picked up where she left off to make it 10-1.  A short Faith charge was stopped when Vivienne Yates came to serve and pushed the score to 20-7.  Faith then decided it was their turn, and made some key plays including a strong seven point run to make the score 18-23.  Jenny Benson closed out the match as she put down the final two kills of the night, and Emmaus took the set 25-20.

"Both teams played well tonight, and much credit goes to Faith for staying strong until the end," said Coach Pitman.  "Our team played a fantastic mental game, which is a large improvement from our last meeting with Faith.  Every single player on the roster made large contributions tonight, and that is what is needed for us to be successful.  Coach Ruter and I are extremely proud to see these ladies give their best effort as a unified team!"

Emmaus rises to 9-5 (4-2 MCCC) on the season.  The Lady Eagles make the long trip to Manhattan, Kansas this weekend for two very important conference matches.  Friday night pits Emmaus against NCCAA II nationally ranked (#4) opponent Manhattan Christian.  Saturday the team faces Barclay College in what should be a very even matchup.  Match times are 7:00 pm Friday and 11:00 am Saturday.