Bulldogs Hold off Broncos in Straight Sets
| Final | 1 | 2 | 3 | T | |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
|
Hastings (8-4, 2-2) | 13 | 24 | 24 | 0 |
|
Concordia (NE) (11-1, 4-0) | 25 | 26 | 26 | 3 |
(Seward, NE) – Making their second trip to Seward this season, the Hastings Broncos fell in three sets (13-25, 24-26, 24-26) to Concordia on Saturday.
The Bulldogs lost the first point of the match, but won 12 of the next 14 points and never trailed in the first set again in their 25-13 first set win. In the first set Concordia had 13 kills to Hastings' eight and forced seven Bronco errors.
Hastings showed some grit in the second set, as they rallied from a 17-12 and 21-15 deficit to take a 23-22 lead. Concordia won the next two points to set up a set point, but the Broncos held strong to even the set score at 24-all. Back-to-back kills from the Bulldogs gave Concordia the second set win, 26-24 to take a two-set lead.
In the third set, Hastings seemed to be on its way to forcing a fourth set as they led 22-18 late in the third set. A couple of kills from Concordia and an error by the Broncos cut the lead to 22-21, but Hastings won two of the next three points to get a couple of set point opportunities as freshman Makenna Sutter had a kill and block assist in that key stretch. Concordia saved both set points with kills, prompting a Hastings timeout. The Bulldogs kept the momentum after the break, getting kills on the next two points to win the third set 26-24.
For the match, senior Majesta Valasek led the team with nine kills and four block assists, while Sutter had seven kills. Junior Alexis Pontine finished the game with 14 assists and 10 digs. Senior Miriam Miller had a team-high 19 digs.
Up next, Hastings will host Midland on Wednesday, September 25 at 7:30pm in Lynn Farrell Arena.
