KIRKLAND, Wash.  –  Bushnell kept the Eagles from taking flight on Saturday evening, rolling to a 26-24, 25-21, 25-14 win over Northwest University to close out the first half of the Cascade Collegiate Conference schedule on a high note.
 
The Beacons (13-6, 8-3 CCC) won the match going away, hitting over .400 in a dominant third set, setting the tone for the second half of CCC play in which they go in as the fourth-place team, owning a game-and-a-half lead over fifth-place LC State.
 
Bushnell hit .252 in the match and held the Eagles (7-12, 2-9) to a .095 clip. The Beacons held a 43-32 margin in kills and a 6-3 lead in blocks while out-digging NU 56-48.
 
For the second straight night, Hailey Heider averaged at least six kills per set, dominating on offense with 18 kills and a .361 attack percentage. One night after collecting the fourth-most kills in a single match (25) she posted the fourth-most in a three-setter, adding nine digs and an ace.
 
"The team came out with so much heart today, knowing this was going to set the tone for the second half of the season," said Heider. "By the third set we had their middles shut down and our serving kept their pins out of system which allowed us to swing away at the net."
 
Ariana Guerra added ten kills and hit .304 while Makenna Mosher collected four kills and a match-high four blocks. Bella Parque (pictured) led all players with 17 digs while Katie Belitz posted a double-double with 17 assists and ten digs. Elijah Sanders added a team-high 20 assists.
 
Parque said, "This was such a fun match to play in and I am so proud of this team. We hustled and pushed thought every play. We all knew that we must end our halfway mark on a high note and I we had the effort tonight to get the job done.
 
Northwest was led in their loss by Delaney Sparks with nine kills while Azaria Johnson added eight.
 
Bushnell will close out their three-game road trip on Tuesday, heading to Salem to take on the NAIA's No. 7-ranked Corban University (14-2, 10-1) at 7:00 pm.