After dropping the first match against Cleveland State Tuesday night, the Bowling Green volleyball team never looked back.
Redshirt freshman Kendra Halm pounded down a game-high 17 kills, and Chrissy Gothke recorded her sixth triple-double of the season chipping in with 11 kills, 46 assists and 19 digs as the Falcons defeated the Vikings in four sets, 25-30, 30-26, 30-21, 32-30, to capture their third consecutive victory.
BG, which improved its non-conference record to 14-9, has also won six of the last seven matches and four straight on the road.
Head coach Denise Van De Walle said the team played like they were still on the bus during the game one loss.
“I thought that we were a little bit too slow, looked lethargic … and Cleveland State was ready to go,” she said before yesterday’s practice. “They were very aggressive, served the ball very well, hit hard. They were really ready.”
CSU hit .235 compared to the Falcons’ .170 in game one, but Van De Walle said the Falcons came out looking like a new team once they changed sides.
“We started to serve better, pass better … Our blocking was good, hitting the ball harder,” she said. “It was just a complete turnaround. I was really glad to see it.
“We just talked about having to play harder and that Cleveland State was really outworking us,” she said. “One of my pet peeves is when I look out on the floor and feel like another team is outworking us. So we talked about working harder, hitting the ball harder and we did.”
CSU (15-7) was led by Jenna Maddocks’ 13 kills.
Mandeline Means added 10 kills and 10 digs off the bench for BG, while Stephanie Swiger, Ashlei Nofzinger and Meghan Mohr totaled 22 of the team’s 66 kills on the night.
Van De Walle said the win was different from any other win they’ve had over a conference leader this season.
“The IPFW (Indiana-Purdue Fort Wayne) match, we were good from the start,” she said. “We were very aggressive … And we were at home. It was just a slow start [against Cleveland State], but I do attribute that to just getting there, getting off the bus then having to go. We were just sluggish.”
Halm played a big role in helping rebound from a sub-par performance, according to Van De Walle.
“She had a great night,” Van De Walle said. “She really did stand out.”
The Falcons return to conference play this weekend with road matches against Ohio and Kent State, Friday and Saturday, respectively.
But Van De Walle said she likes the team’s mindset right now, especially with tough competition looming.
“What I like is how hard we’re fighting and we talk about that pregame, during the game … That we’re going to have to fight for these matches,” she said. “With the schedule that we have, non-conference and conference, everyone that we play is good.
“There are no ‘gimmies’,” she continued. “So we have to fight hard for these matches, and I really like that. (Tuesday) night I thought we really fought hard for that match.”
