Bulldogs Take Down Jaguars In Three

DAYTON - The Day­ton volleyball team won in three against Tri Cities Prep last Tuesday night in an in­creasingly close battle.

The Bulldogs hit the court with a dominating lead over the Jaguars, win­ning the first set with a quick, 25-10.

In the second set, the Jaguars fought back but couldn't stop the Bulldogs from hitting their stride, go­ing for a nine-point run to put a gap in the score. The Bulldogs hit their groove, meshing as a team and al­lowing players at the ser­vice line to relax and send the ball where it needed to be. McKayla Bickelhaupt served up four aces, three in a row, in an eight-point run for the Bulldogs.

But the Jaguars weren't ready to roll over, putting up more fight than in the first set but still finishing behind with a final score of 25-23, Bulldogs.

In the third set, the Bull­dogs came out ready to finish the match but the Jaguars bit back, keeping the score close for the entire set.

Several more aces helped keep the Bulldogs forge ahead, but the Jaguars were close behind, keeping the score within one point as the set neared its end.

The Bulldogs made one final push to end the set, 28- 26, sending the crowd into a raucous uproar of cheers after the final point hit the floor.

Freshman Bryeana Myrick started on varsity for the first time this season and wasted no time step­ping up to the net. Myrick's blocks and tall frame at the net helped keep the ball out of Bulldog territory.

Head coach Shannon Turner said the match was a big win for the Bulldogs.

"We're passing the ball better," Turner said.

She said her team's ef­ficient passing helps give it more momentum to con­tinue scoring points. Turner added that the addition of Myrick to the starting lineup introduced a differ­ent blocking style to the Bulldogs' gameplay, which helped score points as well.

"We're finally playing more consistently," Turner said. "We have fewer un­forced errors."

McKayla Bickelhaupt had eight kills, seven digs and six aces. Jessica Tate had 15 assists, seven digs and went seven for seven at the service line. Madi­son Mings had 13 kills and seven blocks. Courtney Mings had six kills, nine digs and two aces. Chelsea Wooldridge had 10 as­sists, seven digs, four aces and went 13-for-13 at the service line. Sarah Phillips had five digs, three aces and went 17-for-17 at the ser­vice line. Myrick had eight blocks.