Courtesy of Midland Athletics
YANKTON, S.D. – No. 17 Midland University took to the road within the Great Plains Athletic Conference (GPAC) for the final time in the regular season on Saturday as it traveled to face Mount Marty University. After dropping the opening set, the Warriors regrouped and defeated the Lancers in four sets (23-25, 25-22, 25-20, 32-30).
Despite the early start just past the noon hour, Midland looked energized. Behind a pair of ace serves from Sydney Guthard, the Warriors jumped out to a 6-2 advantage inside Cimpl Arena. The lead continued to grow with Abree Plueger acing two serves during a three-point run, putting Midland in front 12-5.
As the set continued, the Lancers found their rhythm. They chipped away at the deficit and then moved in front following a five-point rally to lead 22-19. From there, Mount Marty held off a late Midland surge to take the opening frame, 25-23.
The second set began as a back-and-forth battle, with each team holding a slim lead through the first 18 points. After tying the set at 9-9, the Warriors edged ahead 16-14. The Lancers responded with a four-point run to regain the lead, but unlike the opener, Midland countered with a rally of its own. A 6-2 finish secured the set for the visitors, 25-22, tying the match.
With momentum on their side, the Warriors sprinted to a 6-1 lead to begin the third set. Short scoring bursts kept them in control throughout, leading by as many as 11 on multiple occasions. With the score at 23-12, Mount Marty mounted a comeback attempt and got within four, but ultimately fell 25-20 as Midland took a 2-1 lead in the match.
The Warriors continued their strong starts in the fourth set, taking a quick 6-2 lead. Mount Marty battled back with a run to go ahead 8-7, sparking a series of ties throughout the remainder of the set. There were an astonishing 18 ties, the final one coming at 30-30. Midland then earned a block from Cameran Jansky and Lauren Jones to set up its fourth match point. Brooklynn Snyder finished the match with a kill, securing the set 32-30 and the victory.
For the match, the Warriors hit .208 on the attack behind setters Brena Mackling and Jaysa Wentzlaff. Mackling finished with a match-high 31 assists, while Wentzlaff totaled 18.
Offensively, Snyder led the way with 21 kills. She was joined in double figures by Jones with 13 and Plueger with 11.
At the net, Jansky had a standout performance with nine block assists, tying her career high. Jones teamed up on several blocks and finished with five block assists. As a team, Midland recorded 10 blocks while holding the Lancers to a .162 hitting percentage.
In the back row, the Warriors tallied seven aces. Plueger, Guthard, and Skylar Scholtingeach had two, while Macey Abel added one. Defensively, Midland was led by Delainey Castand Claire Johnson with eight digs each, while Tori Walker contributed seven.
“We came out of the gates quickly. We had a substantial lead until they went on a run in the middle of the first set,” head coach Micah Rhodes said. “After that, we got in our heads a bit and it affected our confidence. It wasn’t until midway through the second set that we started to find our groove and play our game. It wasn’t a clean match by any means, but we got the job done in a tough environment at an abnormal time of day for a conference match.
“Now we get a week to really focus on ourselves and what we need to do better from an execution standpoint before an opportunity match against Concordia next Saturday,” Rhodes added.
Midland (16-8, 11-3 GPAC) will get a chance to avenge one of its conference losses next weekend when it hosts No. 4 Concordia (20-2, 13-1 GPAC). The Bulldogs won the first meeting on their home floor in September in four sets. The rematch is set for 5 p.m. on Saturday, Nov. 1, inside the Wikert Event Center in Fremont, Neb.
