VOLLEYBALL

The Pilots of Bethel University handed the HU volleyball team a 3-1 loss, 25-19, 25-19, 20-25, 25-16, Wednesday night in Platt Arena in second round action of Crossroads Roads play.

The first time these two squads met, just two weeks prior, the Pilots notched the 3-0 win over Herber’s crew.  Bethel is currently sitting in second place in the league standings with a CL record of 10-2.

HU’s win in set three saw an uptick in offensive efficiency for the Foresters who finished the set with a .171 hitting percentage to Bethel’s .109. Brea Metz led the charge with four kills on seven swings.

The tables quickly turned. The hosts never trailed in the third set but, unfortunately, they never led in the fourth and final set. It’s a trend Coach Herber wants to reverse.

“Our kryptonite is coming out chaotic after winning a set that leads to undisciplined defense and unforced attacking errors. If we can climb this mental hump, we will have an exciting second half of the season. I will never stop believing in this team.”

Jennings Tacosik handed out 31 assists without playing favorites. Metz finished with seven kills on the night to share the offensive load with three other Foresters in Sam Gray, Abby Robinson and Brandy Michie who each put down nine kills.

Huntington was up against a Pilot squad who leads the nation in blocking. While the Foresters didn’t back down from the challenge, most impressive was that they did so without one of their starting middles. When all the dust settled, Bethel out-blocked HU 10-2 but the Foresters still managed 47 kills, just five fewer than their visitors.

“We had adversity against us tonight with being down a key position in the middle,” noted Herber. “But I could not be any prouder of senior Brandy Michie and freshman Morgan Robrock for embracing their role of tag-teaming that spot.”

Ariene Butler paced HU with 17 digs. Tacosik also played an active role defensively by picking up 15 digs while Robinson finished with 12.

Herber remains optimistic about the latter part of their season. “All it takes is a flip of the switch to take us to the next level. It’s a decision. Therefore, each player flipped the locker room switch off and on before they walked of there tonight.”

Next up for the Foresters (0-10, 0-9) is a home matchup with Taylor on Friday at 7:00 p.m.