Chicago, IL - The Tigers started out strong but narrowly lost the opening set against the Archers of Moody Bible College with a score 24-26. After dropping the second set 19-25, Grace showed great tenacity and claimed back to back sets of their own with scores of 25-17 and 25-16. The fifth set was a thriller for both teams and fans alike. Points were traded back and forth throughout the set until the Archers captured the final point with a let serve finishing with a score of 14-16.
"This was an amazing match for us, both offensively and defensively," said Coach Becky Karsten. "The team's enthusiasm kept the competitive drive high. It's unfortunate the game ended with something that is out of our control (a let serve), but we can hold our heads high knowing that we worked hard to the very end and played the best we have to date."
The Tigers returned to the court 30 minutes later against the NCCAA Mideast Region leaders of Kentucky Christian University. Although energy levels and enthusiasm remained high, the Tigers lost in three sets with scores of 16-25, 16-25, and 22-25.
"We are excited by the things we saw from this match as well. We consider today a positive indicator of a great season to come."
Saturday's gameball was awarded to Freshman Libero, Emma Summerfield, for her consistent serve receive, defensive skills, and high serving percentage.
Notable contributions include: Adrianna Bunce 30 kills, Amy Leszinske with 18 kills, Ashley Bearden 58 set assists, 5 aces and 11 kills, Emma Summerfield led the team with 29 digs.
GBCVB has a big week ahead facing their second Mideast matchup on Tuesday against Great Lakes Christian College, followed by their home opener on Friday against Finlandia University. The Tigers return to their home court on Saturday against Lake Michigan College and Mount Mary University.
Go Tigers!
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Emma Summerfield
