Volleyball Gets Back in the Win Column Against Spurgeon
By Jon Crossman
GLADSTONE, Missouri – If you like sitting on the edge of your seat, Saturday's game was the perfect show for you, with the lady Eagles closing out three sets against the Spurgeon Knights in some tooth and nail competition. The Knights kept it close in their joust, averaging a 4-point differential in each set with the final set score (25-23) causing the most grief for the Eagles.
The Knights ran an offense very similar to the Eagles, keeping their front row movements off the ball unpredictable and disrupting the blocking abilities that usually come in strong from defensive giants Amanda Larson and Rachel Kleczka. This kept it close for the first set, up until Morgan Stephens got a momentous serving run to pull the Eagles to a victory. Spurgeon learned their lesson on protecting the gaps on their side of the court and put it into practice to come out for three quick points in the next set. Faith retaliated with several key placements from Makenna Laib, and they were back on top 5-3. Spurgeon took a timeout to regroup, seeking to clean up their attack errors before the second set slipped away. The Eagles did not waver and kept their form through to win their second set. Faith went on to establish a dominating presence in the final set, laying out their biggest lead of the game at 23-11. Spurgeon showed an epic spark of grit in the final plays of the game, stunning the lady Eagles for a 12-point run of their own before Rachel Kleczka finally delivered a thunderous kill to call game.
Barring the last defensive breakdown of the game, the Eagles had some record numbers, recording 29 successful kills and protecting their house with 20 total blocks. Audrey Holbert continues to impress with her 13 digs for the Eagles, solidifying her starting spot along with Emma Owens, who finished with four kills and several key blocks throughout the game.
The Eagles play next at Calvary University on September 17, at 6:30 PM.
