Milwaukee, WI- The Bloechl center was the site for Saturday's meeting between the volleyball teams of Maranatha Baptist University and the Mount Mary Blue Angels. MBU was victorious over Mount Mary on October 13th, in Saturday's meeting, the teams were as close as can be, playing to a decisive fifth set, which Maranatha won to hand the Blue Angels a tough defeat.
Set one saw the Blue Angels play some of their best volleyball of the season, they took the opening set from MBU by a 25-21 score. In set number two, Maranatha was the superior team and won 25-13.
A special moment did occur in set number two, Brianna Ecker reached the most impressive landmark of 1000 career kills. She is the all time MMU leader in kills, digs and points, she was recognized during the match and will be again on Senior night, November 3rd.
In set number 3, the alternating fashion of the match continued. Perhaps inspired by Ecker's accomplishment and recognition, Mount Mary stormed back and won the third set by a 25-20 score. The fourth set saw the alternating winners continue, the Sabercats took set four by a 25-18 score and sent the match to a decisive 5th set.
What had been an incredibly close match stayed that way through the fifth set, unfortunately for Mount Mary and the home crowd, the Sabercats took an early lead and held on for a 15-10 fifth set win to take the match.
In addition to Brianna Ecker's milestone, Emma White had a day to remember. She recorded the rare triple double, a most impressive feat for a setter. White had 26 assists, 21 digs and 11 kills on the day. In the match where she eclipsed 1000 career kills, Ecker totaled 19 on the match and also had 21 digs. Caitlyn Krell also played a strong match, piling up 22 assists and 13 digs.
Following the thrilling match up, the two teams will meet once again in just two days. On Monday, October 30th, the Blue Angels (5-17) will travel to Watertown to take on the Sabercats in the third meeting between the two teams during the 2023 campaign. All coverage will be available here on www.mtmaryathletics.com
