Traveling to Heritage Academy for the KCAC Volleyball Tournament Oct. 12, the Beth Haven varsity volleyball team opened play against Christian Fellowship, going back and forth with the Eagles until finally pulling out a big win in a best of five game match.
The win, the Bearcats’ ninth of the season, propelled them to the championship game, where they squared off with their biggest rival, Portland Christian School.
That’s where the stress of playing in back-to-back games caught up with them though as Beth Haven ran out of gas after a big win in the first game, dropping consecutive losses in games two and three to wrap up second place in the tournament.
“We went into the Portland game exhausted,” Beth Haven Head Coach Charla Froman-Glover said. “We were forced to play with very young players, one of which was hurt, and the Portland fans got so loud and intimidated the team, interfering with the team’s ability to think and communicate. The combination of all of the above factors influenced our ability to deliver.”
Rader and fellow captain Taylor Stewart earned KCAC All-Tournament honors.