Women’s Volleyball Team Shows Resiliency Against Miami

Ethan Swierczewski
Contributing Writer

The Dayton Flyers Women’s Volleyball team showed off their resiliency against Miami University on Tuesday night, beating the RedHawks in four sets, 3-1.

The Flyers started off slow and a combination of defensive miscues and several missed opportunities led to a 25-17 first set loss.

“We didn’t compete at all in that first set,” head coach Tim Horsmon said. “We made adjustments, but we had 25 unforced errors in the first two sets. We really shot ourselves in the foot; luckily we came away with that second one.”

Dropping the opening set did anything but deter the Flyers who answered by winning the next three, including a fourth set that was tied 21-21 at one point. The squad’s resolve was evident throughout the entire game; no bad call nor deficit in the set could phase the players.

“[We] didn’t make many changes; our kids started to settle down a little bit,” Horsmon said. “They started to push a little bit more.”

Horsmon hopes to build off of that mental toughness as the season moves forward.

“Life is tough. You get challenges, you have adversity. You get back off the deck…we still need to not put ourselves in those situations and execute at a higher level. But [tonight] was good, this past weekend we did a good job of that.”

While tonight’s game was an impressive showing of resiliency by the entire team, the squad’s senior leadership is evident both on and off the court. Seniors Kendyll Brown, Lauren Bruns and Margo Wolf have come in clutch for the Flyers thus far, and their experience as veterans will be vital to the team’s success this season.

“They’re our heartbeat,” Horsmon said. “All three of them have been through a lot of wars and I trust them whole heartedly; how they play and compete, what they do. They drive us.”

The Flyers’ victory over Miami follows a 1-2 weekend at the University of Kentucky’s Bluegrass Battle. The women’s squad suffered losses to Kansas (3-2 final) and Kentucky (3-0 final) before defeating College of Charleston 3-1 to round out the tournament.

The victory also marks the end of a four-game winning streak for the RedHawks, who are coming off a Saluki Invitational title this past weekend. The Flyers hold a 21-13 record all-time against Miami, defeating their Ohio rival 3-2 last September in Oxford.

The Flyers will face off against No. 13 Washington on Sept. 7 as part of the Pittsburgh Panther Tournament in Pittsburgh, PA.

The squad will return home for the Flyer Invitational beginning Sept. 14.

Photos courtesy of Christian Cubacub.
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