Drury Volleyball built a quick 2-0 lead in sets and didn't look back, knocking off previously unbeaten Rockhurst 3-1 in Great Lakes Valley Conference action Friday night at the O'Reilly Family Event Center.
BJ Specht had 18 kills and a .424 attack percentage to lead the Panthers, who improved to 7-3 overall and 2-3 in the GLVC in picking up the biggest win in the NCAA-II coaching career of first-year DU coach
Jenifer Bahner, who was 177-16 and won two national titles in five years at Cowley County (Kan.) Community College.
Rockhurst fell to 9-1 overall and 4-1 in the league, as Drury won by set scores of 25-17, 25-21, 23-25 and 25-19.
"For this team, we've been trying really hard to have them have higher expectations of themsevles and their teammates," Bahner said. "We've been pushing them really hard. I felt like tonight was the night they responded. We weren't perfect, but we just kept coming back, kept fighting and refused to lose this match. I was happy to see that mentality take hold and shift a little bit."
Chloe Foster added 13 kills and
Laynie Timmons had 10 for the Panthers, who hit .204 as a team compared to .155 by the Hawks.
Brooke Antenen had a match-high 48 assists while
Bridget Justis led DU with 18 digs, as Specht added 14 and
Brooke Foster had 12.
"I was also glad to see BJ step up and start to play the way I knew she could," Bahner added. "She led us with 18 kills and became our go-to person on the outside and was second on the team in digs (14). I also feel like statistically, our freshman don't have the highest numbers, but they're doing a really good job. They are holding on to information we're giving them and they are going out and executing with their skills.
"They're buying into the system ... I'm happy to see those two (
Mina House and
Dakota Santore) really progress and become good contributors for this team."
Drury bolted out to a quick 12-3 lead en route to the first-set victory, with five kills and six digs coming from Specht, the national juco tourney MVP who followed Bahner from Cowley County to Drury.
The Panthers led 9-2 at one point in the second set, but watched the Hawks battle back to eventually stand tied at 20-all. But DU scored the next three points to go on to the 25-21 win.
Rockhurst took charge early in the third, leading 17-7 before a huge rally cut the DU deficit to 20-19 late before the Hawks pulled away for the 25-23 win. But the Panthers had clearly regained momentum with that surge, pulling out of a 12-all tie in the fourth set to grab some breathing room at 18-14 and 20-15 on their way to the win. Specht had five kills and Foster added four in the decisive fourth set as the Panthers won their second straight league match after an 0-3 start.
Drury trailed Rockhurst 39-12 in the all-time series entering the contest and had lost five of its last six matches and 21 of its last 25 against the Hawks.
The Panthers are home on Saturday to face William Jewell in a 3 p.m. GLVC match to be televised by Mediacom Connections 22 of Springfield. It's also the first annual "Parents Night Out", where kids in grades 3-8 can get into the match free, and then stay for a fun night with the team from 5:30 til their parents pick them up at 9:30 p.m. Swimming, pizza and games are on the agenda for the PNO festivities, with a cost of $3 per child or $5 maximum per family. Signups will be taken at the match.
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