Concord, NH - The Mustangs traveled down to Concord, NH to take on NHTI in their second to last game of the regular season. It was a tough matchup, but the Mustangs were able to secure a 3-set sweep (25-18, 25-13, 26-24).
The Mustangs started off the match a little flat in serve receive, but were able to rely on their tough serving to go on some runs build a lead. Once their passing was able to stabilize a little bit, they were able to play more composed and commit less errors. This lead to a commanding 25-18 win in set one.
In the second set the Mustangs were able to jump out to an early lead thanks to a 10-point serving run by Tiara Begishe. She ended the night with 5 aces. After that the Mustangs were able to cruise and ended up winning the set by 12 points.
The third and deciding set was a different story. NHTI came out firing on all cylinders and were able to put the Mustangs on their heels. NHTI's crowd started to get into the game and NHTI was even leading at one point 19-14. The Mustangs were able to weather the storm and maintained their composure in the face of adversity. They battled back and ended up winning the third and final set, 26-24. Middle hitters Kenzie Bills led the comeback, racking up 12 kills and hitting .350 on the night.
Head Women's volleyball Coach, Kyle Chapman, mentioned, "We are very proud of how we were able to respond to the adversity we had to face today. We had a key player go down with an illness and other people had to step up - and they did so without a second thought. We still have work to do but this was a very good win for us."
The win over NHTI secured the regular season conference championship for the Mustangs outright, the first time in the program's history. When asked about the team's accomplishment, Coach Chapman said, "It has been a great experience to build this program up. It could not have happened without a great group of athletes. We are not done though. We are still dialing in for a conference championship next weekend and hope to win that and earn a spot at the USCAA National Tournament again this year."
The Mustangs play their last regular season match on Friday, where they will travel down to South Portland to take on SMCC.
