ANKENY, Iowa --  Maranatha finishes the Faith Classic Tournament undefeated.

Winning both matches 3-1, the Sabercats are now on a 6-game winning streak. 

OVERVIEW

• Results:
  • Maranatha 3-1 North Central (25-12, 23-25, 25-22, 25-23)
  • Maranatha 3-1 Grace (25-12, 8-25, 25-20, 25-15)
• Venue: Nettleton Center, Faith Baptist Bible College
• Location: Ankeny, Iowa
• Event: Faith Classic Volleyball Tournament
• Attendance: 87 (two games combined)
• Records: MBU (11-4), NCU (8-4), GCU 5-9)

STORY

NORTH CENTRAL - Maranatha woke up this morning ready to go. With a few kills from Kemlo and a nice ace from Bumpus, the Sabercats found themselves with a nice 11-5 lead in set one. With many errors from the Rams, Maranatha easily took the first set, 25-12.

North Central started to wake up a little in the following sets and gave Maranatha a little more of a challenge. The change of pace caught the Sabercats off-guard in set 2 and their own errors caught up to them. North Central took the second set 25-23. 

The Sabercats decided to clean up their play in the third set. With some early kills from Kiarra Henkel and Delaney Thompson, the Sabercats jumped out to an 11-4 lead. The lead did not last, however, as the Rams fought their way back to gain a lead of 15-13. At this point, Coach DeLozier called a time-out, giving the Sabercats a chance to gain their composure. Maranatha was able to tie the game up at 21-21 and thanks to four more attacking errors by the Rams, the Sabercats came away with a 25-22 win in set three. 

The fourth set was no less of a challenge as the game remained a close one throughout. But, with the exception of the first point, Maranatha was able to maintain their lead throughout the entire set. They finished with a score of 25-23, ending the match. 

North Central finished with a total of 34 kills and 31 assists compared to Maranatha's 31 kills and 28 assists. It was ultimately the Rams' 60 errors that cost them the match.

GRACE - Maranatha was faced with yet another delay when it came to their second match of the day. But this time they did not let that delay phase them. They came out hitting the ball hard with 12 kills in the first set. They quickly won the game 25-12. 

The Sabercats fell apart in the second set. With multiple errors, Maranatha quickly fell behind 6-15. A timeout from Coach DeLozier did not seem to help much at all as the Sabercats came back out scoring only two more points the rest of the game (8-25).

Things were sorted out between games though and the Sabercats were back to their usual selves in set three. Mattie Bumpus once again helped lead her team to a victory, with 18 kills and 4 blocking assists in the match. Arielle Henkel also chipped in 10 kills along with 2 blocking assists and a solo block. Maranatha finished off the match by winning the final two sets 25-20 and 25-15. 

Caitrin Kemlo achieved a career milestone today of 518 kills. Emily Johnson also hit another career milestone with 2008 assists.

The Sabercats will look to push their winning streak to seven when they play Emmaus this Tuesday (10/4) in their second home game of the season. 

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MBU Starters: 3-Johnson, 4-Reid (Libero), 8-Bumpus, 21-A. Henkel, 22-Miller, 23-K. Henkel, 24-Thompson

STATS (two matches combined)

• Bumpus: 26 K, 9 BLK
• Johnson: 61 A, 28 DIGS
• Kemlo: 18 K, 4 BLK
• K. Henkel: 9 Kills, 23 DIGS
• A. Henkel: 12 K
• Miller: 25 DIGS
• MBU: 77 K, 70 A, 154 DIGS
• Last Time: North Central defeated Maranatha 3-0 at the Rockford Invite on October 29, 2021.
• Last Time: Maranatha defeated Grace Christian 3-1 at the Rockford Invite on October 30, 2021.
• Series: Maranatha leads the all-time series against North Central 18-3
• Series: Maranatha leads the all-time series against Grace Christian 27-0

OPPONENT

• North Central University (Minn) competes with Maranatha regionally in the National Christian College Athletic Association 
• North Central University (Minn) also competes in the Upper Midwest Athletic Conference
• North Central University (Minn) finished the 2021 season with a 10-18 record
• North Central University (Minn) did not make the 2021 NCCAA Dll National Tournament or the 2021 UMAC tournament
• Grace Christian University competes in the National Christian College Athletic Association (midwest region) 
• Grace Christian University finished the 2021 season with a 10-16 record
• Grace Christian University did not qualify for the NCCAA Dll National Tournament

NEXT

The Sabercats return to Watertown where they will play Emmaus, Tuesday at 7 p.m. Follow all the action at mbusabercats.com/schedule.