Facing a two-set deficit, the University of Redlands volleyball team rallied to win the third in Tuesday's Southern California Intercollegiate Athletic Conference (SCIAC) match against Occidental College but came up short of the complete comeback against the Tigers. The Bulldogs suffered their unlucky 13th loss of the season by scores of 16-25, 12-25, 25-18, 20-25.
After the Tigers unleashed an incredibly efficient offense in the opening two stanzas, Redlands quickly trailed in what appeared to be a likely three-set sweep.
In the third stanza, however, the Maroon and Gray broke a 4-4 tie by posting back-to-back kills while taking advantage of poor passing by the Tigers. During this span, freshman defensive specialist Courtney Johnson (Dana Point, CA) and sophomore libero Brittney Overgaag (Palm Desert, CA) combined forces from the service line to account for seven Bulldog points, resulting in an 11-7 lead that Redlands never relinquished in the third set.
With sophomore outside hitter Morgan Buckner (San Rafael, CA) leading the offensive attack, the Maroon and Gray pieced together a .270 performance that prevailed over a struggling opponent en route to the solid 25-18 victory. Buckner finished with a match-high 14 kills while hitting .239 on 46 attempts.
However, Occidental responded with a 5-2 lead in the fourth set by eliminating its attacking errors, and forced Redlands into an early deficit during the must-win stanza.
But the Bulldogs refused to go away and eventually tied it up at 10 apiece. Junior middle blocker Alexa Herlosky (Henderson, NV) uncorked two of her four kills during this stretch.
With the combination of tough serving by Buckner, freshman middle blocker Kelly Best (Redlands, CA) and Overgaag, Redlands rattled off a 5-1 run for a 16-12 lead.
By stepping up its offense, Occidental clawed its way back, resulting in an eventual tie at 18 all.
The Tigers' attacking momentum continued as they knocked down seven kills in the final eight points to edge out the Bulldogs in the fourth set, 25-20.
In addition to her match-high 14 kills, Buckner led the Maroon and Gary with 18 digs. Senior outside hitter Dorothy Catanese (Corona, CA) added six kills, while Herlosky posted a hitting percentage .400.
Occidental (12-5, 5-2 SCIAC) gained double-digit kills from freshman middle blocker Katie Wiese (Denver, CO) and junior outside hitter Kasey Rose (Los Olivos, CA) with 11 apiece, and senior middle blocker Gwynne Davis (Los Gatos, CA) with 10. Defensively, sophomore libero Madyson Cassidy (Arcadia, CA) supplied a match-high 21 digs for the Tigers.
Redlands (1-13, 1-6 SCIAC) heads to Caltech on Friday for a 7:30 p.m. showdown with the Beavers.
