Broncos Fall in First Two Labor Day Classic Matches
(Omaha, NE) – On day one of the Labor Day Classic hosted by College of Saint Mary’s, Hastings battled with #1 Indiana Wesleyan, the two-time defending NAIA champions. The Broncos lost the first two sets, then won the third, before losing a tight fourth set, 25-23. In the second match of the day, Hastings took on Oklahoma Panhandle State in a rematch of their season-opening loss. The Broncos came back from two sets down against the Aggies to force a fifth set, but lost 15-11.
Team Stats
Indiana Wesleyan (IN)
| Game Statistics | Indiana Wesleyan (IN) | Hastings |
|---|---|---|
| Hitting % | .197 | .142 |
| Blocks | 7.0 | 10.0 |
| Digs | 55 | 44 |
| Aces | 4 | 7 |
Oklahoma Panhandle State
| Game Statistics | Oklahoma Panhandle State | Hastings |
|---|---|---|
| Hitting % | .207 | .140 |
| Blocks | 13.0 | 5.0 |
| Digs | 95 | 84 |
| Aces | 5 | 10 |
(Omaha, NE) – On day one of the Labor Day Classic hosted by College of Saint Mary's, Hastings battled with #1 Indiana Wesleyan, the two-time defending NAIA champions. The Broncos lost the first two sets, then won the third, before losing a tight fourth set, 25-23. In the second match of the day, Hastings took on Oklahoma Panhandle State in a rematch of their season-opening loss. The Broncos came back from two sets down against the Aggies to force a fifth set, but lost 15-11.
In the first set against the Wildcats, Hastings took a 10-9 lead on a double block by sophomores Mikah O'Neill and Makenna Sutter. From there, Indiana Wesleyan tied it and never trailed in the set after they took the lead at 11-10. The Broncos managed to tie the score at 18, but the Wildcats won seven of the next 10 points to win the first set, 25-21.
The second set had a similar score trajectory to the first set, as Indiana Wesleyan had a one-point lead at 12-11, but won six of the next eight points to gain momentum. Leading Hastings 18-14, they started trading points until they took the set, 25-19.
The Broncos came out aggressive in the third set, winning five straight after the first point to go up 5-1, which included kills from Sutter, O'Neill, and junior Ilse Benne. After leading 9-3 at one point, the Wildcats were able to close the gap at 12-10. Three straight points beginning with a Sutter kill and followed by two Eagle errors gave Hastings the momentum they needed to control the set. Leading 20-18, Hastings won five straight points, including a double block by O'Neill and junior Camryn Ringsdorf on set point, as Hastings took the third, 25-18.
Indiana Wesleyan started fast in the fourth, going up 12-5. The Broncos got back in it with a 5-0 run to make it 12-10. Then with the Wildcats leading 14-11, O'Neill got a kill and Hastings won the next three points after that to take a 15-14 lead. The lead swung multiple times over the next few points, as Sutter and Ringsdorf delivered kills for Hastings. The Broncos took a 23-22 lead on a Wildcat error, but the defending champs rallied by winning the next three points, including match point on a kill, to take the fourth, 25-23.
Benne led Hastings with 10 kills, with Sutter right behind with nine kills. Freshman Klarissa Dowdy contributed a team-high five blocks, along with four from O'Neill and Ringsdorf. Sophomore Lainey Benson had 13 digs, while senior Alexis Pontine and freshman Fran Warson had 18 assists.
In their second match, the Eagles started fast by taking a 12-5 lead in the first set that they led the entire way. The lead later grew to as much as 10 at 21-11, before Oklahoma Panhandle State closed it out, 25-16.
Hastings started the second set on a run, leading 5-3. Tied at five, the Broncos won the next five points with kills from Ringsdorf, Sutter, and Dowdy giving them a 10-5 advantage. The Aggies came back and took a 12-11 lead, then with the set tied at 16, they claimed six of the next seven points to go up 22-17 and take control of the set. Oklahoma Panhandle State closed out set two shortly after at 25-20 to take a two-set lead.
In set three, the Broncos trailed 5-4, but rattled off six straight points that included two aces from junior Madison Navarrete and two kills from O'Neill, as they led 10-5. Hastings maintained their five point lead at 14-9, then after the Aggies got within three, a kill from Sutter and a couple aces from Benson helped grow the lead to eight at 19-11. Hastings later closed out the set at 25-17 on an O'Neill kill to send the match to a fourth set.
Just like the third set, the Aggies held a lead at 9-7 and Hastings took control with four kills in the next five points, as part of winning nine of the next 13 points to go up 16-11. Oklahoma Panhandle State later cut into the lead at 17-15 and 21-18, but Sutter and Pontine helped push the Broncos to the 25-20 fourth set win and set up a decisive fifth set.
The fifth set started well for the Broncos with Sutter, O'Neill, and sophomore Kaleah Olson delivering kills to go up 6-2. With Hastings leading 9-7 however, the Aggies got on a run at just the right time, winning the next five points to go up 12-9 and force a Bronco timeout. Hastings won the first point after the timeout, but Oklahoma Panhandle State won three of the next four points to win 15-11.
Sutter led the match with 19 kills, along with 10 kills from Benne. Pontine finished with 36 assists and 14 digs. Benson led Hastings in digs with, while O'Neill and Navarrete contributed 12 and 10 digs, respectively.
Up next, Hastings will take a couple of ranked teams tomorrow, first with #8 IU Kokomo at 9am tomorrow morning and then with #24 William Carey at 3pm to conclude their matches at the Labor Day Classic.
