Volleyball Goes 1-1 in Opening Day Matches
(North Newton, KS) – On day one of the regular season and the Bethel Tournament, the Hastings volleyball team went 1-1. They fell to Oklahoma Panhandle State in their first match, 3-1 (21-25, 25-27, 25-18, 19-25), then 3-0 (25-6, 25-18, 25-15) against Langston in their second match.
Team Stats
Oklahoma Panhandle State
| Game Statistics | Hastings | Oklahoma Panhandle State |
|---|---|---|
| Hitting % | .113 | .128 |
| Blocks | 6.0 | 3.0 |
| Digs | 62 | 67 |
| Aces | 13 | 11 |
Langston
| Game Statistics | Hastings | Langston |
|---|---|---|
| Hitting % | .347 | .050 |
| Blocks | 5.0 | 3.0 |
| Digs | 49 | 25 |
| Aces | 11 | 2 |
(North Newton, KS) – On day one of the regular season and the Bethel Tournament, the Hastings volleyball team went 1-1. They fell to Oklahoma Panhandle State in their first match, 3-1 (21-25, 25-27, 25-18, 19-25), then 3-0 (25-6, 25-18, 25-15) against Langston in their second match.
The Aggies got off to a blazing start, winning the first nine points of the match. Hastings broke through on the tenth point on a kill from junior Camryn Ringsdorf. The Broncos started to get back into the set and with the score at 12-6, the Broncos won seven straight points to take a 13-12 lead. Oklahoma Panhandle State managed to find their rhythm shortly after, going back up 19-15 and eventually taking the opening set, 25-21.
The second set was evenly-matched early on with the teams splitting the first 20 points. Hastings took six of the next eight points to grab a 16-12 lead, with two kills from sophomore Mikah O'Neill and one kill from sophomore Kaleah Olson. Leading 19-14 after a couple errors from the Aggies and an ace from sophomore Malena Onespot Danforth, the Aggies got back to within one at 23-22.
Ringsdorf gave the Broncos a set point opportunity with a kill on the next point, then after two points went the way of the Aggies, she came up with another kill to make it 25-24. Oklahoma Panhandle State responded well by winning the next three points to go up two sets to none with a 27-25 set two win.
With Hastings leading 9-8 in the third set, the Aggies committed four consecutive errors to make it 13-8. Following an Aggie point, Hastings took three straight points to go up 16-9. The Broncos maintained a steady lead from there in set three with two kills from O'Neill and one kill each from sophomore Makenna Sutter and junior Amiya Barnes.
Leading 23-17, Ringsdorf and Olson closed the set with kills set up by senior Alexis Pontine to win it, 25-18. Pontine had eight assists in the set as Hastings committed just two attacking errors in the set. O'Neill and Ringsdorf each had three kills in the period.
Set four started well for Hastings, as they led 6-4, then after falling behind 11-9, they pulled back ahead 14-12 in a stretch that included two aces from junior Madison Navarrete. The Broncos held a 19-18 lead, but the Aggies closed strong like they did to open the match, taking the next seven points to win the fourth and final set, 20-18.
O'Neill led the team with 13 kills, while Ringsdorf also reached double-figures with 10 kills. Pontine had 19 assists to lead the way and Onespot Danforth added 16 assists. O'Neill also led the team in digs with 19 and sophomore Lainey Benson managed to get 16 digs.
The Broncos came out on a mission against Langston in their second match, looking to avenge their earlier loss. They took the first set 25-6, having five stretches where they won at least four points in a row and registering a .500 hitting percentage. Hastings totaled 14 kills and just one attacking error in the set. O'Neill and Sutter led the team with five and four kills, respectively, in the opening set. Pontine contributed six assists and Barnes had two blocks.
In set two, Hastings went up 6-2 on a kill from Sutter. After Langston got within two at 8-6, the Broncos took back the momentum by winning 10 of the next 12 points, taking a 18-8 lead. O'Neill had two kills during the run and Pontine contributed two aces as well. Hastings held the lead steadily from there, despite the Lions trying to battle back. O'Neill, who had five kills in the second period, later closed the set at 25-18 with a kill set up by freshman Fran Warson to put Hastings up 2-0.
Hastings did not waste their time taking control in set three, jumping out to a 9-3 lead, led by two kills from Sutter. O'Neil and Ringsdorf each picked up a couple of kills shortly after to put the Broncos ahead, 16-7. Langston responded with four straight points, but a double block by Ringsdorf and freshman Klarissa Dowdy swung the momentum back to Hastings. The Broncos closed it out shortly after at 25-15, thanks to three kills by Barnes, then two kills from Olson.
O'Neill had 12 kills in game two to lead the way, followed by Sutter and Dowdy with eight kills each. Warson led Hastings with 19 assists, with Pontine just behind at 18 assists. O'Neill and Benson each recorded 12 digs and Barnes had three blocks.
Up next, Hastings will play two more games tomorrow, Aug. 15 as part of the two-day Bethel Tournament in North Newton, KS. They will play Texas A&M Texarkana at 9am and Bethel at 3pm.
