MILWAUKEE, Wis. -- Sabercats finish Mount Mary classic 2-0 after. They defeated Mount Mary yesterday 3-1 and went on this morning to take down Finlandia 3-0. 

With those wins, Maranatha is now on a 9-game win streak. 

OVERVIEW

• Results:
  • Maranatha 3-1 Mount Mary (25-17, 25-18, 21-25, 25-20)
  • Maranatha 3-0 Finlandia (25-23, 25-14, 25-13)
• Venue: Bloechl Center, Mount Mary University
• Location: Milwaukee, Wisconsin
• Event: Mount Mary Autumn Classic
• Attendance: 39 (Game 1) and 28 (Game 2)
• Records: MBU (14-4), MMU (8-12), FINU (1-17)

STORY

MOUNT MARY - The Blue Angels gave the Sabercats a challenge yesterday on day 1 of the Mount Mary Autumn Classic. It was a rough day on the attacking line, as both teams seemed to struggle. With 30 attacking errors for Mount Mary and 25 attacking errors for Maranatha, it seemed like the teams for just giving each other the points. Even so, this did not stop Mattie Bumpus from delivering 13 kills. Caitrin Kemlo chipped in another 9 kills. 

What Maranatha lacked on the front line, they made up for in their serving. Delaney Thompson had 5 of the 11 total aces for the Sabercats. Maranatha was also solid on the night with their passing. Johnson, Reid, and Miller combined had a total of 43 digs in the match. Between the three, they were able to put up over half of Sabercats' total 82 digs. 

Between the solid serving and passing, and with Bumpus and Kemlo's help on the front line, the Sabercats were able to continue their winning streak and beat Mount Mary 3-1. 

It will be an exciting match this Thursday as Maranatha will take Mount Mary on for a third time this season... but this time on their own court!

FINLANDIA - The Sabercats had to be up early this morning to get things rolling against Finlandia. Maranatha seemed a little tired when they started the match. They managed to win the first set, but only by a 2-point margin.

It wasn't until halfway through the second set that a spark ignited in the Sabercats. The Lions had no answer for Delaney Thompson and Mattie Bumpus on the front line. 10 of Thompson's 15 attacks resulted in kills, giving her a kill percentage of .600 on the match! Bumpus crushed 10 of her 16 attacks, finishing the match with a kill percentage of .562. 

After Maranatha found their rhythm, it was smooth sailing. They finished off Finlandia in sets 2 and 3 with scores of (25-14) and (25-13). With that win, they are now on a 9-game winning streak.

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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)

• MBU:  76 K,  69 A, 118 DIGS
• Thompson: 16 K, 5 SA, 4 BLKS
• Bumpus: 23 K, 8 BLKS
• Johnson: 55 A, 24 DIGS
• Kemlo: 12 K, 8 BLKS
• Reid: 21 DIGS
• Last Time: Maranatha beat Mount Mary 3-2 at the Lawerence Tournament on September 16, 2022
• Last Time: Maranatha beat Finlandia 3-0 at the Ripon Quad on September 24, 2022
• Series: Maranatha leads the all-time series against Mount Mary 40-16
• Series: Maranatha leads the all-time series against Finlandia 14-2

OPPONENT

• Mount Mary University competes regionally in the Coast-to-Coast Athletic Conference (NCAA DIII)
• Mount Mary University finished the 2021 season with a 7-24 record
• Finlandia University competes in the Coast-to-Coast Athletic Conference.
• Finlandia University finished its 2021 season with a record of 9-13.

NEXT

The Sabercats return to Watertown where they will play Mount Mary University, Thursday at 7 p.m. Follow all the action at mbusabercats.com/schedule.