| Box Score 2 REDDING, Calif./ROCKLIN, Calif.  – The start of the 2020-2021 Bushnell volleyball season may have come almost six months later than originally planned, but the result was just as the Beacons drew up in a pair of road sweeps on Friday.  25-16, 26-24, 25-19 sweep of Simpson University on Friday morning.
 
Assistant Coach Marlee Smith said, "We are just grateful to be able to play our first matches. It was exciting to see our depth first hand against somebody else. We did a good job of weathering some early miscues to find our standard of play."
 
BUSHNELL 3, SIMPSON 0 (25-16, 26-24, 25-19)
 
A complete team effort from start to finish, the Beacons overcame a late deficit in set two and pulled out their first victory of the campaign as they hit .181 and collected five aces and seven blocks.
 
Junior All-American Makenna Northern led the offense with 35 assists, adding 12 digs. "We were so excited to finally be able to play in an actual game," she said. "We went out and got business done and I can't wait to see how we continue to compete in future matches."
 
Sophomore Shay Coons dropped a team-leading eight kills, while senior Natalie Martin (pictured) added seven kills on 11 swings without an error. Junior Callie Wilkins, in her Bushnell debut, earned 14 digs to lead the team. She said, 'It feels really good to be back on the court playing all together. We are working hard to come together as a team and play to our strength. We came out with a lot of energy and consistency. Our hitters did a great job and Makenna was spot-on delivering the ball."
 
BUSHNELL 3, WILLIAM JESSUP 0 (25-18, 25-21, 25-22)
 
The Beacons continued to roll after traveling nearly three hours south, taking care of William Jessup in straight sets to improve to 2-0 on the season. Leading throughout most of all three sets, Bushnell finished the night hitting .169 with a 41-30 advantage in kills.
 
Head Coach Jason Corwin said, "We showed some great resiliency tonight. We made good in-game adjustments to slow down their scoring and we served tough as a group. We still haven't found our groove as a whole, but we had some gutsy performances from several players."
 
The Beacons also owned a 5-3 lead in aces and 67-50 advantage in digs. Northern added 34 assists and 12 digs for another double-double, the 22nd of her career which moves the junior into second on Bushnell's all-time list.
 
Junior Camille Guerrero jumped out with her biggest match so far on the pins, collecting 14 kills and 10 digs whilst hitting .333. "Jessup was a good team," said Guerrero, "and they definitely pushed us and our abilities. We came out with a win and learned new things we need to work on and improve."
 
Martin and senior Claire Salness had seven kills apiece with Martin adding two blocks. Wilkins scored 17 digs and junior Jackie Harmon came up with 12. "Tonight's win was a solid effort from the whole roster," said Martin. "We played calm and fearless and made aggressive plays. Our energy on and off the court helped create some momentum to finish sets strong."
 
Jessup (2-2) had three players lead with seven kills apiece with Mady Padilla, Taylor MacCuish, and Shea DeJoseph getting in on the action. Botagoz Joslin led the team with ten assists while Madison Marlow collected 11 digs.
 
Bushnell heads back up to Redding in the morning and will take on Simpson University once again at 1:00 pm.