EUGENE, Ore. – Bushnell volleyball became the first team in the CCC to take a set off of No. 1-ranked Eastern Oregon University in conference play, opening with a first-set victory before the Mounties rallied for a 17-25, 25-18, 25-12, 25-22 victory.
The Beacons (9-3, 4-1 CCC) drop their first conference match of the season while Eastern Oregon (16-0, 5-0) remain undefeated after hitting .234 and out-blocking Bushnell 8-5.
Bushnell hit .167 in the match and had eight service aces, while out-digging the Mounties 61-55 in a strong defensive performance.
"The girls came out ready to play tonight with an aggressive first set and I loved our response in the fourth set," said Head Coach
Jason Corwin. "We had our chances against a really good team. We will learn from this and get ready for another good CCC opponent tomorrow."
The Beacons were led on offense by
Amyah Semau, collecting a team-high 13 kills along with seven digs.
Taya Blankenship added nine kills and a pair of aces. The middle-blocking duo of
Carly Hanna and Soliel Sands had a strong night for Bushnell, combining to hit .444 with 13 kills and five blocks among them.
Emma Fa'alogo did everything she could to help the cause, posting a double-double with 15 assists, 14 digs and three service aces, which came back-to-back-to-back as the Beacons closed out the victory in the first set. The 17 points scored by EOU in that opener was their lowest point total of the season and just the fifth set they had dropped all season.
EOU was led by Keira Vaughn with a match-high 14 kills while Brooke Womack collected ten kills and a match-high 19 digs. Jaycee Villastrigo added 18 digs while Ava Semprimoznik added 21 assists.
UP NEXT: Bushnell will be tested again on Saturday, facing the only other undefeated team in the NAIA as the No. 4-ranked College of Idaho (12-0, 5-0) comes calling at 4:00 pm. The Yotes defeated No. 6 Corban in five sets on Friday night.
