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Volleyball Bulldogs Sweep Columbia, Advance to Sioux City

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BOX SCORE

McPHERSON, Kan. (MacBulldogs.com) — For the first time since 2018, the McPherson College Bulldogs volleyball squad has advanced to the final site of the NAIA National Championship, taking care of business Saturday afternoon (Nov. 23) against (RV) Columbia College inside Holman Fieldhouse.

Things were about as tight as they could be in the opening set, with neither team able to gain control until a 5-1 burst by the Cougars pushed them ahead 18-13. The teams continued to trade points before kills by Daniela Jimenez and Hadley Waldren, followed by a service ace by Katelynn Brogan sparked a 7-1 run by the Bulldogs to make it set point.

The Cougars wouldn’t go without a fight though, winning three of the next four to take a 26-25 lead, but kills by Luisina Sandrone and Brooke McHale, followed by an ace by Jaden Polovina finished off the comeback, and gave the Bulldogs a 1-0 advantage in the match.

That set win proved to be all the momentum that the Bulldogs would need as they raced out to an 8-5 lead on the heels of a 5-0 spurt that included four attacking errors by the Cougars season-leader in kills Mariana de Carvalho.

Another 5-0 burst by the Bulldogs later in the set that included a kill by Jimenez and an ace by Zoe Jerke pushed the lead to 16-11 late in the frame and forced a Cougar timeout. That merely paused the Bulldogs offensive onslaught, as a kill by Katie Warden and an ace by Brogan helped the Bulldogs win the next four points en route to the 25-18 win.

Looking for the sweep, the Bulldogs flexed their muscles in the third set, using a 5-0 run that included a trio of kills by Sandrone and an ace by Rachel Easom to erase an early 7-4 deficit. The Cougars briefly leveled the score at 9-9, but six of the next seven points went to the Bulldogs, taking complete control of the set.

MC would never look back from there to avenge an earlier season loss to the Cougars. McHale finished off the match with some fireworks, recording her lone service ace of the afternoon to clinch a spot at the final site in Sioux City.

Like most matches, the Bulldogs used a balanced offensive attack with Sandrone and Enya Fierens leading the way with nine kills apiece. McHale and Waldren added eight kills each, and Warden finished with seven.

MC would finish with a .343 attacking percentage. Brogan led the Bulldogs with 22 assists and two aces, while Raegan Murphy added 21 assists and matched with a pair of aces.

Columbia was led by de Carvalho with 11 kills, while Allana Pereira added nine kills. The Cougars finished with nine blocks with Aikaterini Pappa and Agatha Souza each finishing with four blocking assists.

The Bulldogs will head to Sioux City, Iowa for pool play, beginning on Dec. 4 at the Tyson Event Center. Match times and matchups will be announced Sunday (Nov. 24) at 1:00 p.m.

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