Lady Eagles Prevail in Tight Conference Battle

DUBUQUE, IA - Emmaus secured their first MCCC victory of the season on Friday evening with a narrow win over the Lady Ambassadors of Ozark Christian College (Joplin, MO).

The Lady Eagles led during the entire first frame, but Ozark's tenacious defense allowed them to pull within two points near the end of the set (23-21).  A well timed kill by Cory Brodmerkle and a block by Lyndra Davis and Lexi Taylor sealed the victory for Emmaus (25-21).

Set two was back and forth the entire time, and the Lady Ambassadors 22-23 lead resulted in an Emmaus timeout.  As they took the floor again, the Lady Eagles mustered 3 straight kills (Paulina Velderrain x2, Lyndra Davis) to take the set (25-22).

The Lady Eagles controlled the first part of set three, building a 19-12 lead, but Ozark clawed their way back onto the match on Emmaus errors and timely hitting.  The teams tied at 23 and at 24, but the Lady Eagles were again able to find two straight kills (Paulina Velderrain, Lyndra Davis) to end the match (26-24).

"What a match!" exclaimed Coach Pitman.  "We played some inspired volleyball tonight, and although we realize that statistically we have some things we really need to tune up, I appreciated our relentless effort and response to adversity.  We were able to close out sets tonight with quality play, which is something we have been striving for.  Ozark played a great match and they will continue to be a contender in the conference this season."

Morgan Thiessen had 26 assists, and Paulina Velderrain and Lyndra Davis led on attack with 11 and 9 kills respectively.  Verah Banasky contributed 19 digs.

The Lady Eagles take Saturday off, and are back on the court on Monday as they travel to Ankeny, IA to face Faith Baptist Bible College.  Match time is 6:00 pm at Ankeny Christian Academy.