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The Pittsburg State volleyball team came out victorious against the Jets of Newman University last Tuesday, Sept. 28.
The Gorillas kept their home winning streak alive, now sitting at 6-0 on John Whetzel Court, and did so with a dominant performance. Pittsburg State won the match in three sets.
“We went into that game so fired up to continue playing well at home,” said redshirt junior middle blocker Emily Hanenberg. “We were connecting with all players and focused.”
The Gorillas started off the first set on fire, gaining their largest lead of 12 by the score of 16-4. After the Jets got the score back within seven, the Gorillas rallied and finished with a victory by a score of 25-15.
The next two sets were very similar, with the Gorillas flying by the Jets.
The second set was another fast start for the Gorillas, and they didn’t look back. Out of the gates the Gorillas went up 7-5 before going on an 8-0 run, taking the score to 15-5. The Gorillas would finish the set outscoring the Jets by a score of 25-12.
The third set was a bit of a closer set, yet the Gorillas still won 25-19.
With every game, victory or not, there is always room for improvement and head coach Jen Gomez realizes that.
“I felt that we have to get better at finishing when we are up on a team,” Gomez said. “Not let them come back and make a run of points.”
Finishing seems to be a hot topic with the Gorilla volleyball team and is something they know can lead them to more victories.
“I think going into every game with the mindset that we are going to win and the intent to terminate the game and not have the points going back and forth between teams,” said senior outside hitter Kayla Neigenfind when asked about what things the team can still improve upon.
The Gorillas are currently sitting in sixth place in the Mid-America Intercollegiate Athletics Association (MIAA) conference, one of the best conferences in the entire country in Division II. A dominate victory like this doesn’t happen much, but when it does it can lead to more confidence within the team.
“Anytime you get a win in the MIAA it gives your team confidence,” Gomez said. “But we have to use that confidence to know that we can compete with anyone in the conference on any given day. We have to continue to play to our strengths and work to improve our blocking and first ball kill in serve receive.”
The Gorillas feel they can beat any team on any given night if they can put everything together and work as a unit, and after a dominating performance against Newman, fans can now see that this team could be something very special.
The Gorillas’ next home game will be Oct. 12 against inner-conference rival Missouri Southern.