EUGENE, Ore.  – In their final home game, the Bushnell senior class was a huge contributing factor as the Beacon volleyball team rolled to their strongest victory of the season, taking down Warner Pacific in three sets, 25-9, 25-7, 25-14. The win helped the Beacons clinch a tie for third-place in the Cascade Collegiate Conference, giving them their highest finish in school history and a return trip to the CCC tournament.
 
The Beacons (13-5, 9-5 CCC) hit .446 on the night, having just four unforced attack errors. Bushnell held a 9-2 advantage on the block, a 50-35 dig margin and an 8-2 edge in service aces.

Head Coach Jason Corwin said, "We continue to challenge this team with new standards and they continue to meet and exceed those expecations. We asked them to score points and minimize errors. It is a hard balance to accomplish playing aggressively smart and we are so impressed with them."
 
The seniors, Natalie Martin, Kirsten Mueller, and Claire Salness, made their presence felt all night, specifically in the first set as they had a hand in all six points as the Beacons jumped out to a 6-0.
 
One night after setting a new single-match record for attack percentage, Martin nearly did it again. She hit 12-for-14 with no errors for a .857 clip, but missed the minimum-attempts cutoff for the record book by one. She also had a hand in four of the team's nine blocks. Mueller had an early ace and added three digs while Salness finished with 11 kills, and two blocks, hitting .588.

"I believe what set this night apart was our seniors collectively leading the way and the team playing for them," said Corwin. "What a performance to make a statement about what this group accomplished over the last four years. We are so thankful to them and the standard they have established for our future classes to meet and exceed themselves. Thank you seniors!"

Mueller added, "It is hard to put tonight into words, but I can say I am thankful to be able to celebrate with my fellow seniors. i am grateful that we can have this night with our families and friends to support us. i am also thankful for my teammates for making it a night to remember."
 
The seniors were not the only ones dominating. Sophomore Payton Jones added nine kills and a match-high five blocks, junior Callie Wilkins led all players with 14 digs and four aces, and junior Makenna Northern added 37 assists, ten digs, four blocks and two aces.
 
Warner Pacific (2-12, 2-12 CCC) finished with a .000 attack clip, collecting 23 kills and 23 errors. Grace Buchanan led the charge with 11 kills and nine digs while Matalasi Laban had 19 assists, seven digs and a block.
 
The Beacons qualify for the four-team Cascade Collegiate Conference Tournament presented by U.S. Bank. Bushnell earned the No. 4 seed for the tournament and will face top-seed and undefeated regular season champion Eastern Oregon in the semifinals on Friday at 7:30 pm. EOU will host the tournament in La Grande.