The Bulldogs gave one right to the teeth of Shoreline on Friday, winning in 3 sets.
Bellevue was fresh off of a brutal beatdown of all opponents in the Spokane Falls Crossover tournament when they played Shoreline on Oct. 23. They beat Big River, Edmonds, and Green River in three sets each, marking the second Crossover tournament they have come out victorious in this year.
It was a sign of things to come for the team, as they started off quickly in the first set. The game started out close, but by the end of the set the score was 25-13. Bodies were flying across the court as both teams sacrificed themsleves on many a dive, with Heidi Bell being the savior on a number of tough spikes from Shoreline.One on particular involved Bell running well beyond the back line and getting low. Another saw her diving into her own bench.
The second set was the hardest fought on each side, when neither team was able to gain a lead of more than three points until Shoreline finally put a rally together and put the score at 18-21. This time, it was Savannah Feist who was leaving it all on the court, diving for every ball that came close to her, and keeping her team close. The Bulldogs rallied late and won the set 25-22.
The third set was also close, but there was a palpabale intensity difference between the two teams, and Bellevue pulled out the set 25-20.
Last time Bellevue played Shoreline, the Bulldogs lost in a five set heartbreaker on the road. This time, the team seemed to bring an extra drive, perhaps amplified by the racous crowd, to finish of the game in the third set.
“Last time we played Shoreline, we lost in five sets” said Danielle Rehm, who finished second on the team in kills. “So it was good to beat them into the ground”.
The start of the game was delayed for roughly 15 minutes because the lights shut off about a half hour before the game, and needed time to power up again. The school took advantage of the free time to dole out pizza and drinks to what the called “the best fans in the NWAACC”.Three Bellevue fall sports athletes were awarded plaques for being named to the NWAACC All-Academic Team. The students, Rehm of volleyball and ChrisWerre and Joe Rinke of Mens Soccer, were eligible for the award for having 36 credits, maintaining a GPA of over 3.25, and being recommended by the school. Werre currently has a 3.97.
The Bulldogs have a busy schedule in the coming week, as the hit the road to face Edmonds on October 28. They will then enter the third tournament of the year in Mt. Hood. In the tournament they are scheduled to play Highline at 2:00 and Ole Diggers at 6:00. Bellevue continues on to Olympic on Monday Nov. 2. After those matches there will only be three more games in their season, one of which is at home, before the season-ending NWAACC tournament.