NE Nashville News

Cumberland handles business on day one of their two-day stay in McPherson, Kan. with a pair of wins. The Phoenix swept Simpson College 3-0 to open up the day and then handled Kansas Wesleyan 3-1 to close it out. Cumberland is currently on a four game hot streak, their longest run of wins so far this season. 

Cumberland 3, Simpson 0

The Phoenix dominated the game from the first serve, breaking out with a quick 13-2 run during which Codville Rogers put away a trio of kills from the middle.

Simpson struggled offensively and could only connect on a total of four attacks in the set. Cumberland capitalized on the Simpson errors, building off of their early run for a 25-11 victory.

The next two sets played out in a similar fashion, with the Phoenix attackers being nearly flawless in set two with only one error. They totaled just seven over the three sets for an impressive .406 total attack percentage. 

Caleb Ginnings challenged Simpon’s front row as he led all players with 17 digs, making it difficult for them to find much flooring. He helped keep the Simpson Storm at bay with low scoring outings as CU cruised through the next two sets 25-12 and 25-11. 

 

Cumberland 3, Kansas Wesleyan 1

Luka Illic had a big match of 11 kills and seven digs in Cumberland’s victory over Kansas Wesleyan. Codville Rogers added nine kills and four blocks. Caleb Ginnings had another game-high count of digs with 15.

The Phoenix had a slow start as they allowed Kansas Wesleyan to take over in the middle stages of set one. The teams hung closely together until around the 9-9 score mark when the Coyotes struck a run after recording two kills with Cumberland adding an error.

The Phoenix trailed behind for the remainder of the set as they struggled to match Kansas Wesleyan’s runs. The Coyotes pushed for a 25-18 win.

Cumberland bounced back in set two for a 25-19 win, evening up the match 1-1. 

It was a point-for-point style of play for large portions of the set with neither team leading by more than four points until CU made a late game run.

Tied at 18-18, CU headed on a huge 7-1 scoring run to claim the victory. Ginnings ended the set with back-to-back aces. 

The Phoenix carried all of their momentum into set three as they made a 25-12 statement win. 

Cumberland led from the first ball and climbed to an 11 point lead at 17-8. The Phoenix attackers had their best outing of the game with minimal errors while the Coyotes hit in the negatives.

Tyler Sturzoiu checked into the match and concluded the set with three back-to-back aces.

Kansas Wesleyan regained composure to make set four a tougher battle. The teams were once again neck-and-neck, with neither side making a significant stride all throughout.

Tied at 20 apiece, the Phoenix found an opportunity to claim the match as four of their final five points came from Coyote errors. A kill from Jordan Pierce ended the game at 25-22.

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