Forest City, Iowa – The Central Methodist University volleyball team continued their early season dominance this weekend in Forest City, Iowa at the Country Inn & Suites Volleyball Tournament; hosted by Waldorf University.
The Eagles squared off against the hosts' Waldorf University and Cardinal Stritch University on Friday afternoon, before facing NCAA DII Minnesota State University – Moorhead and William Penn University on Saturday morning.
Central Methodist University won all four matches, by finals of: 3-1, 3-0, 3-2, and 3-0. With the four victories, CMU has now won seven straight matches and improve to 10-2 overall on the season.
Day 1 (Friday):
The Eagles opened tournament play on Friday against the hosts' Waldorf University. In a close match, Central came out victorious 3-1. Final scores were 25-27, 25-18, 25-17, and 25-19. The teams finished even or close to even in kills, errors, and hitting percentage. Caitlin Petty (SO/Leopold, Mo.) finished the match with nine kills, a team high 18 assists, and 11 digs.
"I was very pleased with how our girls fought today," said CMU head volleyball coach Allison Jones-Olson. "We didn't have the best day on the court, but we kept pushing and found a way to win. Waldorf is a good team and this was a good win for us."
Following a short break, the Eagles returned to the court Friday evening to face Cardinal Stritch University from Wisconsin. CMU disposed of the Wolves in straight sets 3-0. Final scores were: 25-13, 25-18, and 25-21. CMU finished with a .214 hitting percentage, while the Wolves were held to a .088 hitting percentage. Madison Bond (JR/Jefferson City, Mo.) finished with a team high 11 kills, and Caitlin Petty finished with a team high 27 assists, while Erin Dodd (SR/Pittsburg, Ill.) chipped in with a team high 18 digs.
"We came out very strong in the first set, and that momentum carried throughout the match," said Jones-Olson. "The girls did a great job of serving aggressively and we were able to take advantage of their mistakes. It was a great first day for us here at Waldorf. We hope to continue playing this way the rest of the weekend."
Day 2 (Saturday):
The Eagles continued their strong play into Saturday, when they hit the floor at 9am against NCAA Division II Minnesota State University – Moorhead. This would turn out to be the toughest match for CMU on the weekend. It would go all five sets, with CMU coming out victorious 3-2. Final scores were 25-21, 24-26, 12-25, 26-24, and 15-11. The young Eagles squad fought back Saturday morning for the win, rallying for a 26-24 win in the fourth set with their backs to the wall. CMU then outhit MSU – Moorhead .130 to -.029 in the final set to win 15-11 and clinch the match victory. Petra Schafer (FR/Carinthia, Austria) and Darcy Latham (JR/Bismark, Mo.) had 17 and 15 kills each to lead the team.
To wrap up tournament play, the Eagles faced a familiar foe in William Penn University. The two Heart schools' faced off in a non-conference match, with CMU winning in straight sets 3-0. Final scores were 25-18, 25-14, and 25-14. The Eagles hit .220 as a team in the match, while William Penn hit just .035. The win was a balanced, all-around victory for Central Methodist.
"This was a weekend that we were able to grow as a team," said Jones-Olson. "Today's wins are big, because we came back after being down two to one against Minnesota State – Moorhead, and ended up winning three to two. Furthermore, we got a win against a conference team to finish the tournament on a high note."
The Eagles travel to Hannibal on Tuesday, for a non-conference match against the Trojans from Hannibal-LaGrange University. Central's 2016 home opener inside of Puckett Fieldhouse, takes place the following night, Wednesday September 7th at 7pm against William Woods University.
For more information about Central Methodist University athletics, visit http://www.cmueagles.com. Follow CMU athletics on Facebook at www.facebook.com/cmathletics and on Twitter twitter.com/cmueagles.
