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The way Senior Night unfolded, it's pretty evident the Bearcat volleyball program will still be in capable hands after two-year starters Laira Akin and Alex Hanna move on.
Underclassmen Brooke Bartosh, Abby Graves, Amy Majors and Whitney Mason each recorded double-digit kills and Hanna added eight as Northwest blasted its way to a 3-1 win over Pittsburg State in the home finale Tuesday at Bearcat Arena.
Set scores were 25-16, 20-25, 25-20, 25-17.
Majors, a sophomore from St. Joseph, led Northwest with 15 kills and hit .591. Mason had 12 kills at a .400 clip.
Bartosh followed with 11 and fellow freshman Graves added 10.
"It's definitely a positive for the future," said Northwest Missouri State head coach Jessica Rinehart. "It's been fun to watch our younger players grow, and I think tonight they showed a sign of what's going to be going on next year which is a lot of swinging out of our underclassmen.”
The Bearcats (12-17, 6-10) never trailed in either the first or fourth sets, building leads of nine points in both.
The third set started off close and continued to be that way until the Bearcats scored three straight to open up a 19-14 lead that never shrank below three points.
The only hiccup for the Bearcats was in set two.
Pitt State overcame two early three-point deficits to tie the set at 11, 13, 14 and 15 before taking control with a six-point run.
The Gorillas would close out the game on a kill by Kirsten Erikson to tie the match at 1-1.
"I felt like we just fell flat," said Rinehart. "We didn't keep pressing. We gave them a window of opportunity, and they took it. I thought we did a good job of coming back and responding in games three and four."
Akin led Northwest with 46 assists and added four kills. Tori Beckman was Northwest's top defender with 24 digs.
The Bearcats close the regular season with back-to-back road matches against Southwest Baptist and Missouri Southern.
If they win both, they could finish as high as fifth in the MIAA.
The way Senior Night unfolded, it's pretty evident the Bearcat volleyball program will still be in capable hands after two-year starters Laira Akin and Alex Hanna move on.
Underclassmen Brooke Bartosh, Abby Graves, Amy Majors and Whitney Mason each recorded double-digit kills and Hanna added eight as Northwest blasted its way to a 3-1 win over Pittsburg State in the home finale Tuesday at Bearcat Arena.
Set scores were 25-16, 20-25, 25-20, 25-17.
Majors, a sophomore from St. Joseph, led Northwest with 15 kills and hit .591. Mason had 12 kills at a .400 clip.
Bartosh followed with 11 and fellow freshman Graves added 10.
"It's definitely a positive for the future," said Northwest Missouri State head coach Jessica Rinehart. "It's been fun to watch our younger players grow, and I think tonight they showed a sign of what's going to be going on next year which is a lot of swinging out of our underclassmen.”
The Bearcats (12-17, 6-10) never trailed in either the first or fourth sets, building leads of nine points in both.
The third set started off close and continued to be that way until the Bearcats scored three straight to open up a 19-14 lead that never shrank below three points.
The only hiccup for the Bearcats was in set two.
Pitt State overcame two early three-point deficits to tie the set at 11, 13, 14 and 15 before taking control with a six-point run.
The Gorillas would close out the game on a kill by Kirsten Erikson to tie the match at 1-1.
"I felt like we just fell flat," said Rinehart. "We didn't keep pressing. We gave them a window of opportunity, and they took it. I thought we did a good job of coming back and responding in games three and four."
Akin led Northwest with 46 assists and added four kills. Tori Beckman was Northwest's top defender with 24 digs.
The Bearcats close the regular season with back-to-back road matches against Southwest Baptist and Missouri Southern.
If they win both, they could finish as high as fifth in the MIAA.
