Otsego never trailed in the opening game of its Wolverine Conference volleyball match with visiting Allegan on Thursday, Oct. 6.
That doesn’t mean it lacked for drama.
The Bulldogs scored the game’s first five points and later pushed its lead to six points at 14-8 and 17-11. That’s when things started to get a little more interesting.
Allegan chipped away at the lead until eventually pulling within one point at 20-19 and 21-20.
But Otsego responded by scoring the final four points of the game to win it 25-20 before cruising to wins of 25-6, 25-8 in the next two games to claim the victory.
Bulldog coach Candace Holmes was pleased with the way her team responded following the lull in game one.
“We came out in the first match, built a bit of a lead and then went flat,” she said. “The girls then did a good job of picking themselves up and controlling the game on our side of the net to finish out the match with two strong games.
“We often discuss making sure we set the pace and tempo of a match by being smart and taking care of what is in our control. I thought we did a nice job of that as the match progressed.”
Sadie Bronkema and Erica MacQueen provided much of the offensive firepower for the Bulldogs, going for 14 and 11 respective kills. The pair was also among the defensive stalwarts, with MacQueen matching Liz Barwegan for team-high honors with eight digs and Bronkema adding six digs.
Madison Haluch racked up 29 assists.
“This was a solid team win and everyone contributed to the effort,” said Holmes, whose team improved to 5-1 in league play and 21-8-4 overall.
Mekaylah Hill and Kara Bishop led the first-game surge for Allegan with three kills each.
“The first game we were really in it,” Allegan coach Rosalyn Thorpe said. “The second and third games were just a disaster. We couldn't buy a point.
“I think we really got defeated and didn't battle through the adversity really well. It was tough going from playing so well to being defeated.”
Still, Thorpe did take one positive from the match.
“If we play every game like the first game, we will be good to go for every match,” she said.
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