MISHAWAKA, Ind. --- It was another packed crowd in the Gates Gymnasium for Bethel Women's Volleyball's second tri-match of the season with Siena Heights (Mich.) (2-0) Saints and the IU-South Bend Titans (0-2) on Wednesday night.
Maddy Payne had a great night with 26 kills total for the night and hit for over .400 in both matches with the help of setters Reanna Brown, 36 assists, and Liberty Pierson, 38 assists. Breyana Bosket hit a season-high 11 kills against the Saints at a .455 hitting percentage and only one error.
VS Siena Heights (Mich.)
Bethel jumped to a quick 6-0 start with the Saints in set one met by Ainsley Tacke's attack and three straight errors from SHU. With a 13-9 lead by Maddy Payne's kill, the Saints hit a 6-0 tear to take the lead 15-13.
Late in the set, the two went back and forth to tie at 20 all but Bosket and Tacke went back-to-back kills to take a 23-20 lead and the two would secure the 25-22 set victory.
The Pilots trailed in the second set 14-7 and fought to cut the lead to 15-10 with Bosket's kill but SHU kept a consistent two points for every Pilot point. Payne and Bosket found the floor to chip away 22-16 but the Saints scored three straight points with an ace to seal the second set 25-16.
The third set went down to the wire with the Pilots climbing from a 24-18 deficit and hit a 4-1 run to get to 24-22 and delay the Saints but Siena Heights found an opening to take set three 25-22. The fourth set was the closest of the match trading points up to 8-8 where SHU scored three straight to take a more secure lead of 11-8 but at 12-10, the Saints hit a 5-0 run despite the Bethel timeout to climb to 17-10.
Bethel chipped the deficit to four points at 21-17 thanks to Payne's kill and a Saint attack error, but SHU put up two more points at 23-17, then Payne and Tacke scored for the Pilots and brought the set to 23-20. SHU scored back-to-back kills to secure the set 25-20 and the match 3-1
The Pilots are now 5-1 against Siena Heights and 0-1 in the Gates Gymnasium. Bethel had a five-match winning streak before tonight's match.
VS IUSB
The Pilots won in dominating fashion over the Titans in the nightcap of the tri-match. After tying 8-8 earlier in the set, the Pilots went from being down 13-9 to up 23-16 quickly and secured the first set 25-18.
Bethel went on an 8-3 run to start the second set and later hit a huge 9-0 run late in the set to take a 24-8 lead but allowed three straight points before Payne sealed the 25-12 set victory with a kill assisted by Pierson.
The third set was the closest of the match, not leading by more than five points the entire set. IUSB tied the set 14-14 after a pilot attack error, but the pilots stayed consistent and kept their crosstown rival behind. They took the set victory 25-21 and swept the Titans.
NEXT TIME OUT
The Pilots go into the Onset Invitational, hosted by the University of Saint Francis (Ind.), 2-2 and will start the tournament against the Talladega Tornadoes on Friday, Aug. 23 at 1:15 p.m. at the University of Saint Francis and take on the IU-Southeast Grenadiers at 8 p.m. at the Allen County War Memorial Coliseum. Check out bupilots.com for more information on tickets and how to watch the Pilots in action.
For more information about Bethel Pilots Athletics check out bupilots.com or on Instagram, Facebook, X, and YouTube by searching @bupilots or the hashtag #AnchorUp for updates on all 31 Bethel Pilots sports.
