ROCKLIN, Calif.  – The Bushnell volleyball team closed out the Warrior Classic on Saturday with their fourth straight win, toppling UC Merced in three sets, 25-16, 25-20, 25-12, behind the strength of 14 service aces.
 
The team went 4-0 during the tournament, and after dropping their first set to William Jessup on Thursday night, never lost another.
 
Head Coach Jason Corwin said, "I am so proud of how the team performed this weekend. We have had to adapt and overcome a lot these past two weeks so only dropping one set for the entire weekend is encouraging. The resiliency and grit of these girls is inspiring and I am looking forward to the start of league on Friday"
 
Bushnell's victory was never in doubt on Saturday morning as they hit .215 and held the Bobcats to just 20 total kills on the day. Jessica Northcutt (pictured) had another incredible performance on offense, collecting a match-high ten kills and hitting .556 without an attack error. Payton Jones added seven kills without an error (.538) while Halle Neumann created six kills.
 
Makenna Northern continued to do her thing, adding another 27 assists, along with five digs and two blocks. She said, "We were very confident coming into this game so I was a little worried because that can sometimes hurt a team. It didn't hurt us at all as we came out strong and finished strong. If we keep this mentality for conference, I have no doubt we will do well."
 
The Beacon servers tallied 40 aces over the weekend, averaging more than three per set. Camille Guerrero and Callie Wilkins each had nine, including five alone in Saturday's match for Guerrero.
 
Guerrero said, "We had such a great start to the season, coming out undefeated. We played great teams this weekend and now that we have a couple of games under our belt, we are getting ready to play EOU next weekend.
 
With the brief pre-season in the rear-view mirror, Bushnell turns their attention to the start of Cascade Collegiate Conference action and their first road trip which finds them taking on defending CCC champion Eastern Oregon University on Friday and perennial power College of Idaho on Saturday.