Concordia concludes 2-2 Hastings trip
By Taylor Mueller, Sports Information Assistant
HASTINGS, Neb. – After an impressive showing yesterday that included two four-set victories at the Hastings College Classic, the Bulldogs looked to continue their winning ways in their first match against 12th-ranked Oklahoma Baptist.
After a slow start in game one, Concordia (3-6, 0-1 GPAC) came back to life to tighten things up in the next two games. They came up short, however, and lost the match 25-14, 25-20, 25-21.
Head coach Scott Mattera was optimistic after the first match and was pleased with the performance that his team came up with after the first game.
“After that first game, we really played well against a very good nationally-ranked team,” Mattera said. “You could see us getting better each game and our systems were working both offensively and defensively. We made some poor decisions but most, if not all, were based on trying to do too much. I can't fault the effort at all and the girls know how well they played and how close we are getting to being a very good volleyball team.
“We played solid, clean volleyball and tallied only seven hitting errors on the match. (The match was) by far our cleanest of the year.”
Offensively, sophomore Jami Necoliczak led the way with 14 assists while senior Amanda Kisker contributed with seven kills and added 14 digs defensively.
In the second match, the Bulldogs squared off against College of the Ozarks in a four-set battle.
After dropping a tight first game (25-23), Concordia fought back to win the second game, 25-18. It would be the Bulldogs last victory of the day, however, as they lost the final two matches 25-20, 25-14.
Sophomore Mariah Schamp had an impressive performance with 11 kills on 16 attempts.
Although disappointed in the losses, Mattera came away excited about the growth of his team.
“(College of the Ozarks) really caught fire in games three and four and we just didn't match them when they stepped it up,” Mattera said. “Games one and two were some of the best ball we played all year.”
“(There are) lots of positives from this one but learning that competitive, confidence mindset is still something we are working on,” Mattera said. “We are making progress and I have zero doubt that we will get there.”
Concordia now looks forward to its home opener when No. 11 Doane visits Seward on Tuesday at 7:30 p.m.