LEWISTON, Idaho  – A stumble in the first set of the day did little to deter the Beacons as they opened up Cascade Collegiate Conference action on Friday with a pair of victories against Lewis-Clark State.
 
Head Coach Jason Corwin said, "We started off a little shaky but responded well! We knew that we would have to make adjustments because it was their first games of the year and we had no film, and they graduated several starters. Our team was resilient and made mature adjustments to counter a strong attack. We found a nice rhythm which built some solid confidence."
 
It was the first-ever Cascade Collegiate Conference games for the Warriors, who joined the CCC from the Frontier Conference this season. It was also the first wins in the series for the Beacons who had previously gone 0-4 against LC-State (0-2, 0-2 CCC).
 
"These were quality wins against an athletic and well-coached team," said Corwin. "I am proud of our 5-0 start"
 
MATCH ONE (21-25, 25-19, 25-23, 25-19)
 
The Beacons rebounded from dropping the first set and took the next three from the Warriors. Out-killed 60-40, the Beacons benefitted from nearly 50 unforced errors by LC State.
 
Camille Guerrero and Shay Coons led the offensive assault for Bushnell, combining for 18 kills. Guerrero said, 'we were able to think quick on our feet and make adjustments along the way. We were challenged by their tempo but we were able to quickly pick it up and turn it around."
 
All three reigning CCC Players of the Week also did their part. Natalie Martin earned eight kills, hitting .375 in the middle. Makenna Northern made her mark with 32 assists and eight digs, adding four kills, including an emphatic dump to end the second set. Callie Wilkins continued to pile on the digs with a team-high 23.
 
Lewis-Clark State was led by three players in double-digit kills as Chloe Emory had 16, Carli Berntson had 13 and Jada Wyms added 12. Tori Edwards produced a strong line with 13 digs, nine kills, and three aces while Kenzie Dean led all players with 27 digs.
 
MATCH TWO (25-16, 27-25, 25-15)
 
Bushnell hit a sturdy .256 as a team during the afternoon clash, led by an eight-kill, one-error performance from Martin, who added two blocks. Guerrero posted a double-double with 12 digs and a match-high ten kills while Claire Salness collected nine kills and seven digs.
 
Salness said, 'Today was a great start to conference and an encouragement. We really started to get into a rhythm by the end of the day and it is exciting to see how quickly we can get back into the swing of play. We had a lot of great contributions from all around."
 
The Beacons scored eight points on service aces, getting two apiece from Guerrero, Wilkins, Salness, and Kirsten Mueller.
 
Wilkins also led all players with 16 digs while Northern added another 31 assists.
 
 
Bushnell (5-0, 2-0 CCC) remains in Lewiston on Saturday, finishing the weekend 'pod' of Cascade Conference games against No. 13 Corban University at 11:00 am and 2:00 pm.