Big comeback gives Van Buren sweep vs. Cardinal

KEOSAUQUA ? After taking games one and two, Van Buren looked content to hand game three to Cardinal.

Facing a deficit that climbed as high as 10 at 19-9, the Warriors finally turned it on to speed past the Comets and claim the match, 25-22, 25-18, 26-24.

?The girls pulled together. I?ve tried yelling, I?ve tried cheering, I?ve tried bouncing up and down and doing all kinds of stuff, but they have to read it, they have to do it and they pulled together. That?s exactly what they did,? said Van Buren head coach Bonnie Watson.

Facing the 10-point hole, the entire Van Buren rotation got in on the action taking two, three and four points at a time to claw back. Andrea Kayser smoked three kills to end Warrior runs, but the Comets couldn?t come up with much more. Following what proved to be Kayser?s final kill of the match, Van Buren fought off three match points with the help of Hannah Carter to earn its first tie at 24-24. Mackenzie Zeitler put down her last of a team-high 11 kills to give Van Buren its first lead before the Warriors put it away 26-24.

The game three victory made for a sweep off the heels of two hard-fought victories in the opening games led by two game-winners by Zeitler. After Van Buren took a 19-10 lead in game one, this time it was Cardinal that made a push, coming as close as two at 24-22 but falling just short.

In game two, Zeitler strung together seven straight serves to give Van Buren an 8-2 advantage, and behind the Behind the perfect serving of Carter (13-13, three aces) and Taelor Huffman (14-14, four aces), the Warriors never looked back. Cardinal came within one point, but the Warriors never surrendered their lead en route to the 25-18 victory.

While it was the first match in nearly two weeks for the Warriors, Van Buren seemingly didn?t miss a beat and move its record to 5-1 on the season. More importantly, the win is Van Buren?s second-straight SEISC south division triumph where they stay undefeated at 2-0.

?They?re playing together and that was our main goal from day one. We?ve coached them all we can in practice, so we?ve stepped back and now they have to do it on their own,? Watson said. ?Cardinal is a very scrappy team, but it?s always good to protect your home court?

Zeitler also led Van Buren with 11 digs while sister Dakota gathered six to go along with four kills. Hannah Carter also put down four kills, and Katie Hohl dished out 11 assists.

For Cardinal, Kayser led the way with eight kills followed by four from Morgan Benson and three from Sarah Greiner. Benson and Liz Nichols also had three service aces apiece.

Van Buren will remain at home for its next match coming up on Thursday against Harmony while Cardinal awaits Burlington-Notre Dame Thursday in Eldon.