TABOR COLLEGE: Volleyball team falls to Newman
Lady Bluejay volleyball coach Amy Ratzlaff appreciates a wake-up call every now and then.
Especially when it tells her what her team needs to improve.
Tuesday night's home game against the powerful offense of the Kansas Newman Lady Jets told her plenty.
The Jets used both height and Tabor's weakness in fundamentals to swipe three matches from the Bluejays, 3-1.
"I feel like when we were playing our fundamentals, we played well and could dominate the game," Ratzlaff said. "When we let up on our passing or any of our fundamental skill, it gave them the room to dominate."
Tabor was within striking distance for all four matches.
Newman took the first game 30-18 before the Bluejays regrouped to prevail in the second, 30-19.
The Jets won the next two, 30-22 and 30-20 respectively, overcoming the Bluejays' pull to 26-20 in the final game.
"I don't feel like we played poorly; however, we should have done a lot better," Ratzlaff said. "It was a good team, we got a wake-up call, and now we need to keep going."
While Ratzlaff was humbled by the loss, she was pleased with the performance of her outside offense and by the play of Angela Kroeker and Erin Loewen.
"Our outside offense was stronger tonight than it has ever been," Ratzlaff said. "That is partly due to our setter (Sara Haggard) getting the ball where she needs to get it."
The setback leaves Tabor at 5-4 overall and undefeated in the KCAC at 3-0.
Tabor must regroup quickly with Friends invading Hillsboro Thursday at 6 p.m.
The Bluejays travel Saturday to Shawnee, Okla., for a triangular with St. Gregory's and Southeast Oklahoma State.
