Senior Carli Reihman collects a kill over two Bronco defenders Saturday evening. -Jeff Creech/The Miami Student
Revenge was the key motivator for the Saturday night as the Miami University women's volleyball team took on the Broncos of Western Michigan in Millett Hall.
The Broncos ended the 'Hawks' season last year in the first round of the Mid-American Conference Tournament and Miami was ready to avenge the loss.
"You just don't forget about the team that ended your season," said sophomore Andrea Atteberry.
Despite some small miscues early on, the RedHawks got their revenge against the Broncos, winning a five-game set, 3-2. With the win, Miami moved to 4-7 overall and 1-1 in the MAC. The RedHawks currently sit fifth in the MAC East, while Western Michigan is third in the MAC West.
"We needed to realize our potential as a great team, and this was the game to do it," Miami Head Coach Carolyn Condit said.
A back and fourth, ping-pong-like first game set the tone for the rest of the match Saturday night. The 'Hawks had multiple unforced errors late in the game, which ultimately led to the Broncos winning game one, 31-29.
"We have to be able to execute throughout the whole game and not think it's over at point 20," Attebery said. "We have the talent in order to win matches; we just need to be able to mentally overcome any setbacks and finish strong."
Behind powerful hitting from junior Emily Schroeder and senior Jeanna Staun, the 'Hawks held off a late charge by the Broncos to win the second game 30-24. Miami wiped out the little mistakes from the first game, to build a seven-point lead the Broncos couldn't overcome.
"Everything seemed to click," Atteberry said. "We weren't making any thoughtless errors and we were executing really well on both offense and defense."
A late rally by the RedHawks in the third game was not enough to surpass the early eight-point lead that the Broncos had built. Once again the simple mental errors on both defense and offense prevented the RedHawks from overtaking the Broncos, as they fell, 30-26.
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"We needed to keep our composure and not let one little error throw us off our game," Atteberry said.
Miami regained its composure and battled back and forth, as the 'Hawks barely hung on to win 30-28.
Great ball placement and execution late in the game helped Miami secure the victory and force a fifth and final game. The RedHawks confidence and focus grew as the unforced errors and minor mistakes were eliminated.
"We were able to play much better defense on their big hitter and eliminate our own mistakes in that fifth game," Condit said.
The RedHawks came out of their huddle fired up for the fifth game. Miami before Saturday night's game had been just 2-2 in five-game matches, while the Broncos had not lost this season when the match went to a fifth game.
Miami took control early and finished off the Broncos with a crushing kill from freshman Michele Metzler. The 'Hawks won the fifth game 15-10 and won the match 3-2.
The RedHawks' next match will be Friday night at Ohio University, when the RedHawks will take on the No. 17 Bobcats.
The Bobcats haven't lost a regular season MAC game in the past three years, winning their last 64 matches, and are the four-time defending MAC champions.
"We always get under their skin and play well against them," Condit said. "They are a good team, but they're beatable. It would be sweet if we could end their win streak on their home court."
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