It was a good run, but Highland unfortunately witnessed the end of their four-game winning streak on Saturday. They took a 3-1 hit to the loss column at the hands of the Bishop Hartley Hawks. The Fighting Scots were given a dose of their own medicine in this game as the Hawks apparently hadn't forgotten their loss the last time these teams played back in October of 2023.
Highland started the match hot and won the first set, but they struggled down the stretch and lost the last three. Once all was said and done, the final score wound up at 20-25, 25-13, 25-20, 25-20.
When it comes to explaining why Highland lost, don't look at MaKaylee Merckling. Despite the final result, she had 21 digs, two aces, and a kill. That's the most aces Merckling has posted since back in October of 2023.
Even though they lost, Highland was lethal from the service line and finished the game with 11 aces. That strong performance was nothing new for the team: they've now served at least five aces in 21 consecutive matchups.
Bishop Hartley found their leader in underclassman Samantha Heuser, who had seven digs and four aces. Those four aces set a new season-high mark for Heuser.
Highland's defeat dropped their record down to 16-5. As for Bishop Hartley, their victory ended a three-game drought at home and bumped them up to 12-8.
Highland wasted no time getting back out on the court and has already played their next match, a 3-0 win against Ontario on the 8th. As for Bishop Hartley, it'll be Battle of the Birds when Hawks dukes it out withBishop Watterson at 6:30 p.m. on Wednesday.
Article generated by infoSentience based on data entered on MaxPreps
