ROCKFORD, Ill. - With four-set wins over Grace Christian and Rockford today at the Rockford Invite, the Sabercats have some hard-earned momentum to wrap up the regular season.

Maranatha's Outsides found a rhythm, as Liberty Bailey put up career-high numbers in both matches and combined with Mattie Bumpus for 54 kills in the two matches combined. With the wins, the Sabercats conclude the regular season with an 11-15 record.

OVERVIEW

• Results:
  • Maranatha 3-1 Grace Christian (23-25, 25-23, 25-17, 25-23)
  • Maranatha 3-1 Rockford (25-23, 25-16, 12-25, 25-20)
• Venue: Seaver Center, Rockford University
• Location: Rockford, Ill.
• Attendance: 41, 56
• Records: MBU (11-15), GCU (9-13), RU (6-23) 

STORY 

Grace Christian: Maranatha seemed to find the rhyhtm they'd been looking for offensively, as they put up almost 15 kills/set to hold off Grace Christian. Grace set up a block late in the first set that the Sabercats couldn't get through, but after the Tigers took the opener, 25-23, there was no stopping MBU. The Sabercats strung together three straight sets while attacking at a clip of .310, and Bumpus and Bailey were right in the thick of it. Bumpus tied her career-high 20 kills in the match while Bailey set a new career-high mark of 10.

Emily Johnson made the attack flow with 34 assists, and she added four kills and 15 digs herself for an all-around performance. Erica Ureke (15 digs) and Megan Miller (13 digs) were active in keeping the floor clean for Maranatha as well. Jennifer Rueb put up seven kills without an error and the Sabercats were finding a rhythm as a unit.

Rockford: The Sabercats took that rhythm into the second game of the day - a four-set win over the hosts, Rockford University. Bailey renewed her career-highs by logging 11 kills and 19 digs in the match, and a 17-kill second set gave the Sabercats a 25-16 win and what seemed to be an early finish to the final match of the tournament. But Rockford held Maranatha to just 12 points in the third frame as the Sabercats struggled on both ends of the serve. But once Maranatha worked out those kinks, they out-muscled Rockford to a 25-20 win to secure the match, the tournament, and a two-game winning streak heading into the postseason.

Ureke registered 22 digs in the Rockford match. Bumpus compiled 13 kills and eight digs while Johnson matched her 34-assist mark from earlier today.

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MBU Starters: 3- Johnson, 6- Bailey, 8- Bumpus, 11- Ureke (L), 14- Kemlo, 22- Miller, 24- Rueb

STATS 

• Box Score (Grace Christian)
• Box Score (Rockford)
• Bailey: Career-high 11 K and 19 D in Rockford match
• Bumpus: Ties career-high of 20 K in Grace Christian match
• Last time: Maranatha defeated Grace Christian 3-0 on September 26, 2020
• Last time: Maranatha defeated Rockford 3-0 in 2019
• Series: Maranatha leads the all-time series against Grace Christian 27-0
• Series: Maranatha leads the all-time series against Rockford 13-4 

OPPONENT

• Grace Christian competes in the NCCAA DII Mideast Region
• Rockford competes in the Northern Athletic Collegiate Conference (NCAA DIII)

NEXT

The Sabercats head to the NCCAA North Region Tournament on Friday as the #3 seed and will open play at 2:00 p.m. against the #6-seeded Crown College Storm. Details at mbusabercats.com/schedule.