MARION, Ind. -- Indiana Wesleyan University volleyball had quite an evening tonight as they defeated Grant County rival Taylor (Ind.) 3-0 and in the process earned a spot into the Crossroads League Tournament Championship on Saturday.
Indiana Wesleyan won by scores of 25-22, 25-18, 25-15 to set up a third match with Bethel (Ind.). BC will host the match on Saturday as they defeated Indiana Wesleyan in both contests this season. The two teams tied for the regular season championship with 16-2 records.
“We really wanted to play them,” said Indiana Wesleyan head coach Candace Moats. “We couldn’t overlook Taylor because they are an excellent, excellent volleyball program. We are excited to play them again. It’s all about Bethel and bring it on. We are ready to do something big and get another shot. Bethel is such an excellent program and it’s going to take everything for it to go well for us.”
But before the rematch with Bethel, Indiana Wesleyan had to defeat No. 3-seed and rival Taylor tonight in Luckey Arena. And Taylor looked to put it to Indiana Wesleyan from the start and raced out to a 9-3 lead in the first set.
“I feel like we never start really fast,” said Indiana Wesleyan senior Rae Brandes. “But I think we stay calm in the situations and we are ready to fight back. We fought for every point because if you don’t let down you always have a chance.”
Following the fast Taylor start, Indiana Wesleyan was forced to call a quick timeout and access the situation.
“We told the girls in the time out that it’s all about you and your nerves right now,” said Moats. “So we told them to calm down because they are not doing anything that we don’t know that they are going to do. It was about us and our nerves and we just needed to take a deep breath. And once that happened it just unleashed the lion.”
Indiana Wesleyan trailed 20-16 late in the opening set but went on a 9-2 run to earn the comeback 25-22 victory. In the second set, Indiana Wesleyan held a slim 17-16 advantage and ended that set with an 8-2 stretch to win 25-18. The final set was tied at 10-10 before Indiana Wesleyan scored 15 of the final 20 points to win 25-15.
“We knew we just needed to win it and get it done,” said Moats. “I could just see it, that little bit of confidence after getting two or three points in a row. And that was it.”
Rae Brandes was the only player on either side with double digit kills as she ended with 10. Kristine Egebrecht added eight and Remy Bucknor and Sarah Collicott each contributed seven. Katey Holler assisted on 32 kills.
Rebecca Brandes totaled 12 digs while Holler had 11 and Rae finished with 10. Indiana Wesleyan blocked 10 shots with Bucknor leading the way with three solo and four block assists. Christiana Tavo added two solo and three block assists.
Indiana Wesleyan and Bethel will play at 7 p.m. on Saturday. The match will be in Mishawaka, Indiana with the winner earning the league’s automatic bid to the NAIA National Tournament.
