As new students began to arrive on campus at Northland
International University, the women's volleyball team headed out on Wednesday afternoon, August 31. This was the second long journey for the Lady Pioneers, this time toward the
west as they headed into Dubuque and Ankeny, Iowa. They returned Sunday
afternoon, September 4, the day before classes were to start. The first leg of the trip was to Emmaus Bible College for a late afternoon match on the
Eagles' campus. “This was our sixth match and their first. We looked
comfortable and our opponent a bit uneasy,” noted Coach Herron. The Pioneers
won with scores of 25-16, 25-13, and 25-23. Beth Leeds and Ellie Hodak led the attack
with nine and five kills respectively. Alyse Sugimoto ran a balanced attack with the other
hitters, gaining twenty-three assists.
After this match, the team drove four hours to
Ankeny, Iowa, for the Faith Baptist Bible College Invite. The teams involved in this endeavor proved
to be better. “I tried to encourage the team with the idea that how we start
against a very good team in Grace University [GU] would set the tone for our
play through the weekend,” Coach Herron explained. GU was the first opponent and eventual championship
participant. The Northland team played aggressively but lost in four sets, with scores of
18-25, 25-20, 11-25, and 21-25. Beth Leeds and Marissa Hawley gained eight and seven kills respectively. Ellie Hodak added fifteen digs. The Royals had a definite size advantage at
the net, wearing down Northland's blocks and digs. The final match for
Northland on Friday featured the Pioneers against the host Eagles. Coach Lanny Nihart had his team ready, and Faith won a 13-8 lead over Northland in the first match.
The Pioneer defense stiffened, and Northland pulled within a 21-22 score. The
offense outscored Faith 4-1 and won the first set 25-23. In set two, the
Pioneers played with confidence, jumping to a 22-11 lead; they held on for a
25-12 win. Northland pushed to an 18-14 lead in the third set. Strong serving and
solid defense helped Northland take the set and match, 25-21.
On Saturday morning,
the Pioneers played a familiar opponent in Grace Bible College (GBC). Coach John
Spooner had the same group of players going into his second season. His team was
ready to play and hoped to change the results of the last eight meetings between
the Tigers and Pioneers. Northland won the first set 25-16. GBC came out composed in set two and won 25-21. Set three was close at 19-20 in favor of
GBC. GBC took advantage of the Pioneers' weakening offense and won 25-23. In set four, the GBC
Tigers carried a 16-9 lead to a 25-20 win, helping them beat
Northland for the first time in Coach Herron’s tenure at Northland
International University. “We committed competitive suicide by self-inflicted
errors.” concluded
Coach Herron.
Northland's goal was to be in at least the third place match; however, the loss against GBC relegated the team to the fifth place match against Manhattan Christian College, a team much like their first-round
opponent. Coach Herron encouraged his team to
rebound and finish well. The Pioneers
lost in four with scores of 21-25, 29-27, 12-25, and 22-25. Ellie Hodak had eleven
kills, Beth Leeds swung for seven kills, and Chelsea Behn collected six kills. Alyse
Sugimoto ran the offense with thirty-six assists. Melissa Moisant got eleven digs followed
by Mariah Hennigan with thirteen.Coach Herron concluded, “I love the potential in
this team, but it will only be perfected in the furnace of competition. They
have been divinely gifted with the privilege of ability. They must realize they
have also been granted a responsibility to improve and be ready to play. My job
is to give quality reps in practice, so they can execute in match time!”