NEW WASHINGTON — Buckeye Central had a dominant night at the net for coach Missy McDougal Thursday against Bucyrus.
The most dominant of the crew is a girl she knows very well, her daughter Mia.
Mia McDougal controlled the net with 18 kills, but four other BC players contributed kills as the Buckettes downed the Redmen, 25-14, 25-12, 25-14.
In fact, all three of McDougal’s daughters, junior Mia, sophomore Mara and freshmen Maren, contributed to the win.
“(Mia) can jump so high to go over the block and they’re great defensive players as well,” Bucyrus coach Amber Christy said of the McDougals. “Those three girls did a heck of a job. They were pretty key when you have to spread out all over the floor. It’s nice to have them in every corner.”
“Mia had a huge night at the net, she seemed to have some really good sets at the net,” McDougal said. “It takes all of them to make it work, but she did well, and they all did well at the net.”
With the win, the Buckettes improved to 3-3 in a very tough Northern 10 Athletic Conference, and 6-5 overall. McDougal said that her team’s tough early schedule has hurt her team.
“It’s been a couple of rough weeks,” McDougal said. “We haven’t looked real good. I challenged the girls to come out ready to play tonight, play loose and have some fun, and that’s what it’s all about.
“I felt that they actually did that,” she added. “It started with our passing, we got some passes to our setters, and we were able to get the balls to our hitters and we had a lot of determination.”
Christy said that her team’s numbers and sickness over the past week has hampered her team.
“We didn’t come ready to play at all,” Christy said. “You could see it all over. We didn’t have anyone who stood out. They came in and were flat right off the bat, as all the other schools, I’m not saying it’s just us.
“We’re also battling sickness,” she added. “For over a week, we haven’t had a full team to practice with. And, when you have eight players, it makes it difficult to shuffle people around. I’m not looking for excuses at all. We just got beat today.”
Bucyrus never led in the first game, led 2-1 in the second game and 1-0 in the third game. Other than that, the Buckettes dominated the net.
BC led 9-2 early in the first game before going on a 6-0 run to take a 15-3 lead midway through the game. After Bucyrus got two points on Madalyn Kimmel serves, the Buckettes took 22-9 lead. After Bucyrus scored four straight points on Emma Tyrrell serves, the Buckettes used two Mia McDougal kills and a Grace Collene kill to end it.
Buckeye opened the second game with six straight points on Mara McDougal serves and grabbed an 8-2 lead.
Bucyrus cut the lead on 8-6, one coming on a Kimmel kill, before the Buckettes scored 10 of the next 13 points to take control.
BC finished with seven of the next nine points.
In the third game, Maren McDougal scored on three straight aces as the Buckettes led 7-2. From that point, the Buckettes scored seven of the next nine points.
Bucyrus’ Addy Ricker scored on five straight serves late in the game, but BC’s lead was just too great.
Both coaches thought communication was the difference.
“(BC) communicated very well; that’s something that my girls didn’t do. I think my setter was the loudest one on the floor today,” Christy said. “And that’s not normal. I want my setter talking.”
“The girls talked a ton,” McDougal said. “We hadn’t been doing that. It shows what they were capable of when they communicate and play loose and have fun.
“Everybody was part of this win tonight. Everybody has a role, and everybody played their part tonight. It was a great team win.”
Christy said that her team has been getting better. The Redmen’s record is deceiving. Bucyrus is winless in the N10 but has won five non-conference game.
“We’re better than what we played today; I’m not saying we would have won because Buckeye is a very good team,” Christy said. “But I expected them to come out and compete and so, what we have to do tomorrow is go back to the drawing board and find out who wants to talk on the court and who wants to get those spots in the back row. Passing has definitely got to improve.”
McDougal talked about her young team.
“At one point tonight, we had four freshmen on the floor,” McDougal said. “And that’s not our normal lineup but every day we’re going to improve. We just have to keep working hard in practice and I’m excited to see where we end up this season because we haven’t come close to peaking.”