Courtesy of Midland Athletics
SIOUX CITY, Iowa — No. 17 Midland University began play at the final site of the NAIA Women’s Volleyball National Championship on Wednesday with a pool-play match against No. 8 McPherson College. The teams battled into extras in the opening set, with the Bulldogs edging past the Warriors. McPherson went on to take the next two sets to complete a sweep in the opening match of Pool H inside the Tyson Events Center.
It was a tightly contested first set between the Warriors and Bulldogs. Meeting for just the third time in program history, the teams traded points early on to an 11-11 tie. Midland put together a small run to take a two-point lead before McPherson answered with a more sustained rally. A 6-2 stretch put the Bulldogs ahead by two as the back-and-forth continued. Neither team led by more than two points throughout the set.
After a 22-22 tie, McPherson claimed the next two points to reach set point. Midland fought off elimination and tied the set at 25-25, but the Bulldogs earned six more set-point chances before finally closing out a 30-28 win.
Midland hit .182 in the opening set, led by Brooklynn Snyder‘s five kills. Macey Jacksonadded four kills, and Abree Plueger chipped in three in their first set at the final site.
The Warriors opened the second set on a 3-0 run and stretched the lead to 9-3. McPherson responded with a 9-2 run to take a 12-11 advantage. From there, Midland struggled to sustain momentum while the Bulldogs pieced together small bursts to extend their lead to 21-17, prompting a second Warrior timeout. McPherson closed out the set 25-20, hitting a blistering .483.
Midland hit .219 in the second set, with Snyder recording five more kills. Lauren Williamsadded four, and Jackson tallied three.
Much like the first set, the teams traded points early in the third and played to a 7-7 tie. A five-point surge put McPherson in front, and although Midland nearly matched it, the Bulldogs held a 16-13 lead at the midway point.
The Warriors were unable to draw even as McPherson closed out a 25-19 win to complete the sweep. The Bulldogs hit .143 in the set and finished with a .264 attack percentage. Midland hit -.050 in the third, dropping its match percentage to .112.
Snyder led the Warriors offensively with 13 kills on 30 swings, hitting .200. In her first match at the final site, Jackson posted nine kills on 16 attempts (.562). Plueger and Williams each had six kills, hitting .125 and .056, respectively.
Brena Mackling and Jaysa Wentzlaff guided the offense, with Mackling recording 13 assists and Wentzlaff adding a team-high 21 assists and seven digs.
Defensively, Claire Johnson led Midland with 15 digs. At the net, Snyder and Avery Coucheach tallied two block assists. The Warriors finished with three total blocks, while McPherson totaled seven.
“It’s hard to play against two opponents. Unfortunately, we battled ourselves as much — if not more — than we did McPherson,” head coach Micah Rhodes said. “At this point in the season, against this caliber of opponent, you can’t make as many errors as we did. We didn’t control our side of the net — physically, mentally, or emotionally — and that’s where my frustration stems from. We didn’t exhibit the grittiness and relentlessness that have defined this group all year.”
“The good news is that we have another opportunity tomorrow. It’s a clean slate. We need to regroup, reset, and come out focused and intentional. I still like our pool and our chances, but we need to bring a better mentality into tomorrow’s match.”
Midland (19-11) will look to bounce back Thursday afternoon with its second—and final—match of pool play against the University of the Cumberlands (35-0). First serve is set for 1 p.m. inside the Tyson Events Center.
