SMC Volleyball 1-1 For the Week
The Southwestern Michigan College Volleyball Team split their games this week with a loss at Muskegon and a win in their home opener against Glen Oaks.
The team traveled to Muskegon on Tuesday to battle the #9 Jayhawks and fell in three sets: 21-25, 15-25, and 19-25.
Coach Jenny Nate said, "We were coming off of a 5-1 showing at the Opening Weekend Tournament, which was a great start, but we know the importance of playing the highest caliber teams possible as early in the season as possible, so I'm willing to put my team to the challenge now because I know it will help us learn fast and make improvements before our conference matches start.
"We came out and held our own in the first set, but we were overthinking our game, and we were strategizing a bit too much when we rolled into the second set. During the third set, we calmed down and started really just playing our game, came out swinging, made some defensive and offensive adjustments, and once again battled for every point, but we just couldn't pull ahead and finish the set. Muskegon is strong and scrappy, and we will be able to learn a lot from our film study this week. We will apply what we need to work on and hit the court tomorrow to prepare for Glen Oaks Saturday."
In the Muskegon game, the leading serving scorers were: Anna Johnson 7 points, 1 ace; Emma Beckman 4 points, 1 ace; Nikki Nate 3 points, 1 ace; Bianca Hobson 2 points; Josie West 1 point.
Kills: Nikki Nate 7, Josie West 6, Bianca Hobson 5 , Emma Beckman 2, Juliette Schroeder 2.
Blocks: Nikki Nate 2, Shayla Shears 2, Josie West 1, Bianca Hobson 1.
Digs: Josie West 10, Emma Beckman 7, Elizabeth Stockdale 7, Nikki Nate 6, Taylor Miller 5, Anna Johnson 4, Juliette Schroeder 4, Bianca Hobson 2.
Assists: Anna Johnson 12, Emma Beckman 9.
Then on Saturday, the Roadrunners defeated the Glen Oaks Vikings in three sets 16-25, 25-19, 25-18, and 25-22.
"Today was a great test after falling in the first set," Nate said. "We came out fast, but they had a great block and were very scrappy defensively. Heading into the second set, we used the depth on our team, made some lineup changes in order to change our strategy, shots, and to make sure it was harder to read our offensive attacks and attackers. We work hard at practice to make sure all of our players can do everything - pass, attack (from multiple spots), and serve, and the ability to use multiple attackers to mix up our scoring really paid off. We also know that our energy is key to controlling runs and winning matches, and I was really happy with our energy from start to finish. We were able to stay focused and finish the last three sets. This was great preparation for Ohio next Friday when we play in the Owens' Invitational where we will continue to face great teams and tough competition."
Leading serving scorers for Saturday: Sophia Deeds 14 points; Emma Beckman 10 points, 2 aces; Bianca Hobson 7 points; Nikki Nate 6 points, 2 aces; Josie West 6 points, 2 aces; Anna Johnson 5 points
Kills: Bianca Hobson 11, Nikki Nate 7, Josie West 7, Sophia Deeds 7, Juliette Schroeder 5, Emma Beckman 4, Anna Johnson 2
Blocks: Bianca Hobson 3, Emma Beckman 2, Nikki Nate 1, Shayla Shears 1
Digs: Josie West 14, Emma Beckman 14, Sophia Deeds 11, Anna Johnson 9, Nikki Nate 7, Taylor Miller 3, Shayla Shears 2, Abi Marquis 1, Elizabeth Stockdale 1, Amanda Jones 1
Assists: Anna Johnson 18, Emma Beckman 17
SMC, now 6-2, is scheduled to meet Cuyahoga and Edison on Friday, then Terra State and Lakeland on Saturday.