窪蹋勛圖厙

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By Ryan Schlehuber, 窪蹋勛圖厙 Sportswriter

It was another sweep for 窪蹋勛圖厙 volleyball, as the Centurions traveled to Kuyper College, routing the Cougars in three sets, Tuesday, Sept. 9.泭

The Centurions (2-7 overall) beat the Cougars 25-22, 26-24 and 25-15, totaling an impressive 0.260 hitting percentage, which head coach Kara Youngs believes may be the best her team has ever done in the three years the program has existed, so far.泭

���The big thing is we stayed consistent, front row and back,��� Youngs said. ���There were moments when the momentum shifted to them, but we found ways to get that back and score.���泭

Montcalm had an impressive outing all around, with each player finding a way to help the team win in each set.泭

���There were so many good things that happened,��� Youngs said. ���It really was a true team effort all the way around. Our defenders had all similar dig amounts and on serve receive, we put ourselves in really good situations to run a good offense.���泭

Freshman outside hitter Emily Davis (Jenison, Mich.) had a team-high 16 kills, hitting a career-high 0.467% and sophomore middle blocker Alanna Kent (Belding, Mich.) finished with nine kills and a career-high 0.368% hitting percentage.泭泭

Two other freshmen Centurions earned career-highs in hitting percentage, as well. Outside hitter Hailey Guerra (Grant, Mich.) finished with five kills and a 0.368% and setter Ella Bishop (Grand Rapids, Mich.) had two kills, 24 assists, no errors and was 0.333% on hitting. Sophomore setter Jordan Dompreh (Flint, Mich.) also hit 0.333%.泭

���Our team has been in the hundreds from what I���ve looked back on,��� Youngs said of the team���s hitting percentage history. ���Wednesday night, we had five players that hit over 0.300. You want the players in the 300 to 400s, so if a team is hitting 0.250 all the way around, that���s a strong, solid team. You want a few players consistently in the 200s, so if it���s in the 300s, that���s really strong.���泭

Sophomore defensive specialist Briley Andres (Cedar Springs, Mich.) finished with six assists and tied for a team-high eight digs with sophomore libero Jaden Gomez (White Cloud, Mich.).泭泭

Kent was encouraged that her team found the same kind of rhythm it did when the Centurions beat the Cougars at home in a Sept. 3 game.泭泭

���I believe the most impressive part about our team���s performance last night was finding a rhythm through the loud environment and playing our game through it all,��� Kent said. ���We know how we play, and we knew it was going to be a loud environment, so just having everyone connect with each other and play the game we know how to play was definitely what helped us find our way through the night.���泭

After a rough start to the season in August, the Centurions have been on a roll this month, which is what Youngs anticipated.泭

���August was a little rough. We were competitive but just weren���t getting the win,��� Youngs said. ���We talked about starting mentally 0-0 in September and having a strong month because that���s when conference play starts. We learned from August and didn���t want to start that way in September. It helped us going into this month mentally, as well.���泭

Kent said the biggest thing the Centurions improved on since last month is just trusting in teammates more.泭

���The season started a little rocky with everyone competing, but we all know whoever gets put on the court is going to do everything in their power to be their best and we all respect each other for that,��� she said. ���I believe we came together and found a rhythm in working as a team instead of individuals. We put our losses behind us, focused on what is next for us and strive to improve every day.���泭

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UP NEXT: The Centurions will play a double-header at Grace Christian University in Grand Rapids tomorrow, going up against 窪蹋勛圖厙AA Western Conference foe Kalamazoo Valley Community College at 6 p.m., and then facing Grace Christian at 8 p.m. This will be the first meeting of the season against KVCC, however, Montcalm faced Grace recently, losing a close battle, 3-2, at home.泭

���Our ladies are really excited for this one, we���re working hard,��� Youngs said. ���This is going to be a really good challenge mentally and physically as we���ll see (Grace) in a different way, playing them on their home court.���泭