By TOMMY REZAC
St. Joseph Post
It was a seesaw of a match for the Benton volleyball team at Springer Gymnasium Wednesday.
The Cardinals (6-2) dominated the first set 25-16 before dropping sets two and three 25-21 and 25-20 respectively. Down 21-16 in set four, it didn't look good for Benton.
The seesaw, however, finally tilted back in Benton's direction, as the Cardinals rallied to win set four 26-24 and dominated early to take set five 15-8 over East Buchanan.
The Cardinals snatched one from the jaws of defeat and came back to win against a solid Class 2 foe.
"We struggled last night (against Lawson) with energy and keeping that energy up and staying together as a team," Benton coach Lauryn Doolan said. "We fought through some battles tonight and we were a completely different team. Energy was up and it was a lot more fun, too."
Set one was practically all Benton. After getting swept at home against a great team in Lawson the night prior, the Cardinals came out with a ton of energy and jumped out to a 15-7 lead in the first set.
A big part of that was the eight blocks Benton had in the first set. Sophomore Andrea Simmons and freshman Cammie Peters combined for five blocks in the first set alone.
"It felt great," said Simmons, who finished the match with five kills, 4.5 blocks and an ace serve. "(East Buchanan) was getting scared, starting to tip, so it's just a big momentum builder."
It looked like set two would be more of the same, as Benton started that frame on a 6-1 run. East Buchanan came back, built a small lead and hung onto it down the stretch for a 25-21 win to knot the match at a set apiece. Senior Maya Watkins was particularly impressive with six kills in the second set alone.
Watkins was impressive all night with a match-high 20 kills to go with four blocks and an ace.
Set three was very back and forth, with the teams tied at 18-18. The Bulldogs (6-2-1) ended the third set on a 7-2 run to win it 25-20 and take a 2-1 lead in the match.
Set four appeared to be much of the same, with East Buchanan gaining control early and leading 21-16 - four points away from a four-set victory.
Doolan called the Cardinals' final timeout, and saw her team respond with what she felt like the team had been lacking midway through the match - energy.
Junior Hollie Peters, who led Benton Wednesday with 18 kills, took notice.
"Absolute energy," Peters said of her team's rally. "We just had so much more teamwork and we played together so much better."
Benton ended the fourth set on a 10-4 run and won it 26-24. The Cardinals left little doubt early in set five, jumping out to a 7-0 lead and ultimately hanging on to win the fifth 15-8.
"This is definitely a little confidence boost," Doolan said after an up and down match. "A little morale pick-me-up."
Cammie Peters had three kills and 3.5 blocks for Benton in the victory. Junior Avery Morlock had five kills, two aces and a block. Senior Berlin Smith contributed three blocks and two aces as well.
Senior Gracie Kelsey was impressive down the stretch for East Buchanan with seven kills and two blocks. Junior Holly Caylor had six kills, as did sophomore Rilyn Sherwood. Junior Kylie Clark logged three kills.
The win for Benton snapped what was a four-match winning streak for East Buchanan, and the Cardinals are off to their best start through eight matches since 2018.
"This will help us so much honestly," Peters said. "With the win and the energy we had from tonight, we'll bring it forward and I just think we're going to do great."
Benton will play for a third straight night when they head to Cameron for a 6:15 p.m. match Thursday. East Buchanan is home to Northland Christian Thursday.
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