TABOR COLLEGE: Lady 'Jays hit pothole against Bethel
So much for an undefeated season in the KCAC for the Lady Bluejays' volleyball team.
After nine consecutive wins, it all came to an abrupt end Monday night in North Newton.
The culprit was the Bluejays' heated rival, the Bethel Lady Threshers, who have made it a habit of playing Tabor tough.
Who could forget last season's championship match of the KCAC tournament, or the fight the Threshers put up last month in Hillsboro?
In two out of the three matches, a victory was within the Bluejays' reach of possibly continuing the season unblemished as they had a lead in all three matches.
But it was not to be as Bethel snapped Tabor's streak, 30-19, 33-31 and 33-31.
The loss leaves sets the Bluejays back to 13-5 overall.
With both the Threshers and Bluejays sitting atop the KCAC at 9-1, the second half of the season has the potential to come down to the wire.
"We didn't finish," a disappointed Bluejay coach Amy Ratzlaff said of falling to her alma mater. "We didn't take care of their outside hitting and that was what got us in the end.
"Things just didn't go our way and we didn't take care of business. I expected us to perform better, but Bethel played a great game."
Highlights for Tabor's defense included Erin Loewen's 13 kills, Angela Kroeker's nine and Shannon Kroeker and Laura Campbell combined for 12 while Sara Haggard had 33 assists.
Haggard was named as the KCAC Setter-of-Week for week No. 6.
She had five kills, one error, 14 attempts for a kill percentage of 28.6, 93 assists, five aces, six digs and three assisted blocks to lead the Bluejays past Bethany Oct. 8 in Lindsborg and Southwestern in Hillsboro, Oct. 10.
The Bluejays topped the Swedes, 30-23, 30-20 and 33-31 and the Moundbuilders, 30-23, 30-23 30-27.
How big a part Monday night's game will be for both teams depends on how they finish the second half of the season.
"Both Tabor and Bethel need to take care of business the second half of the season in order for this match to mean anything," Ratzlaff said. "If both teams can stay undefeated for the rest of conference play, this game will be very big.
"There's still a lot of volleyball left to play."
The Bluejays host the Kansas Wesleyan Coyotes today with game time scheduled for 6 p.m.
The Coyotes are the only team that has lasted five sets with the Blujeays.
