Bobcats fend off Portagers in four

Posted by Dylan Savela, Manistee News Advocate

BRETHREN — Every time Onekama looked to have a play at the net, a pair of blocking Bobcats were there.

Every time Onekama went on a run, the Bobcats were there to respond.

And every time Onekama came back to close the gap at the end of each game, the Bobcats were there to shut the door.

Brethren seemed to find answers to everything the Portagers threw its way Tuesday night as the Bobcats topped Onekama 25-21, 22-25, 25-17, 25-21 in a West Michigan D League match.

“We were trying to match up, but it was never quite there for us,” Onekama coach Sherri Slater said. “They had good passing, good setting, good hitting.

“It was close, but we could just not get over that hurdle.”

In a match that saw 26 ties and 10 lead changes in all, Brethren seemed to put together runs when they needed it most, including an important nine-point serving run by the Bobcats’ Sarah Costello in the fourth game that essentially put the match away.

“Movement and coverage by all means,” Brethren coach Rachel Edmondson said of her team’s success on the night. “It’s something we’ve really been working on, and we still have to make some tweaks, but otherwise we saw a lot more movement tonight on that court than we’ve seen. I would say that’s the biggest thing that showed tonight.”

Coverage translated to a well-rounded match for many Bobcats.

Costello led the way with six aces and 33 digs while Lexi Lakso had three aces and Aubrey Robak added two.

 Brethren’s Annie MacNeil and Rylee Fleming kept busy up at the net, thwarting attacks by the Portagers and sending down spikes of their own. MacNeil had 17 while Fleming added 10.

“Annie’s aggressiveness at the net really sticks out. She did a really nice job of making smart plays, but at the same time being aggressive,” Edmondson said. “The passes to the setter are getting there so much better, too. It’s helping us get in that transition off the net so that we have our hitters, and that coverage backing them up, ready to go right away.”

A back-and-forth first game finally went Brethren’s way when the Bobcats stayed no more than three points ahead of the Portagers after a 13-13 tie.

Despite Brethren’s 4-0 start to Game 2, Onekama’s Nicki Slater rallied off six straight serve points to give her team an 18-15 lead they wouldn’t relinquish to knot the match at two games apiece.

Slater was 17-of-18 from the service line on the night with five aces and 17 assists. Onekama’s Kelly Koon was 9-of-9 on her serve with one ace and six kills, Jennica Mathieu was 23-of-24 with three aces and 10 kills while Kaylan Fitch added four kills.

Brethren notched the night’s largest margin of victory in Game 3, sparked by a five-point serving streak from Lakso to make it 15-10 and a four-point service run by Robak for a 21-16 cushion.

In Game 4, Onekama threatened to take the match to a fifth and final game by jumping out to 13-6 lead, but the Bobcats chipped away. And when Costello took serve with her team trailing 14-11, a nine-point run followed, and gave the Bobcats their final lead of the night.

“We just seemed kind of flat the entire match,” Slater said after the loss. “I think the effort was there, but if you don’t have that extra communication you usually do, you just can’t work together as well.

“With that said, I thought Brethren played an excellent match. They had a solid game all the way around.”
     

 

 

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