Middle Blocker Courtney Hunter preparing to attack. (Saint Xavier University Athletics)
The Saint Xavier University Cougars were able to come away with a huge win on Tuesday against the Olivet Nazarene Tigers. This win helped them snap a three game losing streak,tying them with Viterbo for the first spot in conference. With this win, it seemed like the Cougars were finally back on track and ready to win an another game against the Bethel Pilots.
The Pilots came into the game at a respectable record of 12-6, while the Cougars stood at a record of 6-8 before Friday. Although the Pilots had the better record, they have been struggling recently, losing three out of their last five games before the Cougars. The Cougars were not doing any better as they matched the same losses before their match with Bethel.
For the last few games, the Cougars have struggled trying to fill the gap left after their two right side hitters, Abby Gentile and Delaney Davis, endured injuries while playing against Governors State. In the game against the Tigers, the Cougars had Middle Blocker Courtney Hunter play on the right side,where she totaled 15 kills with a .194 attacking percentage.
Replacing Hunter at middle is Nicole Grochola, who had a solid outing against the Tigers with five kills and four blocks. The Cougars seemed to have found a lineup that works well together, and presented themselves ready for their game against Bethel.
The first set started off very close with the score differential between the two teams never getting higher than four points. The error stats had separated the two teams during this set. The Pilots horribly hit at a .000%, while the Cougars hit .267%. The two teams had almost the same amount of attacking attempts, however, the Pilots were unable to get a kill. This led to the Cougars taking the first set 25-22.
After a pitiful first set, the Pilots were looking to turn things around in the second.. Things didn’t go as planned for the Pilots, as setter Kaleigh Ritter fired from the service line with a four point serve run including two aces. The Pilots seemed to be helpless against the Cougars, as they easily gained a 7-2 lead early on in the second set.
The Pilots returned the competitive energy back into the set after a run, bringing the score to 8-9. Despite the Pilots’ efforts, this set was never close, as the Cougars maintained the lead for the whole game. Although the Pilots managed to hit better than the Cougars this set, they made too many errors behind the service line and got aced several times. The Cougars won the second set 25-22.
Going into the third set, a sense of urgency seemed to fall upon the Pilots as they quickly went on a 9-0 run to start. The Cougars made this run possible by making six total errors, giving the Pilots easy points. The Pilots jumped out to a 13-2 lead before the Cougars started to make a comeback.
The Cougars would not go quietly and went on a 12-2 run to bring the score to 14-15. Despite their efforts, the Cougars were never able to take a lead and ended up dropping this set 21-25. The main story as to why the Cougars dropped this set was due to hitting a horrendous efficiency of .071%, while the Pilots hit at a match high .314%.
With the fourth set coming around, it seemed the Pilots had all the momentum. The Cougars put up a good fight until the Pilots got to 11 points. After this, the Cougars made several attacking errors, while the Pilots hit very efficiently. The set never came close again and the Pilots were able to win the fourth set 25-17.
With the Pilots winning the last two sets, they had all the momentum going into the fifth set. With the fifth set being short, and only up to 15 points, the Cougars had to jump to a hot start if they wanted to avoid getting reverse swept. Unfortunately, they were unable to accomplish this and the Pilots jumped out to a 10-3 lead.
The Cougars got completely outplayed by the Pilots in this fifth set, ultimately losing 15-7. The Cougars made too many errors and were unable to stop the Pilots’ relentless offense. The Cougars had a hitting percentage of .000% which made it almost impossible for them to score any points. Helping the Pilots complete the reverse sweep.
Despite the loss,there were still some standout players on the Cougar’s side. Outside hitter Connie Lebel had a great game with 20 total kills, which was a match high, but saw a drop in efficiency only hitting .123%. Courtney Hunter was also able to add 11 of her own kills while playing on the right side.
Hopefully, the Cougars are able to learn from this loss and bounce back with a win against the Trinity Christian College Trolls, who they play next Tuesday, September 24th. This will be the first time the Cougars see the Trolls this year. The Trolls are having a down year with an overall record of 3-12 and are fourth in the CCAC, this should be an easy win for the Cougars.