MISHAWAKA, Ind. - The Goshen men's volleyball team is riding high on their second three-match win streak after beating Bethel on the road in four sets, 25-20, 22-25, 25-20, 25-19. It is the seventh straight athletic competition that Goshen has beaten Bethel in - three baseball games, two softball games and two men's volleyball matches since March 7.
With the win, Goshen has kept their hopes alive for the U.S. Highway 20 Cup, where points are awarded to the winning team in the schools' shared sports during the school year. Bethel leads 7.75 to 5.75. Goshen must place higher than Bethel in men's and women's outdoor track and field at the league meet and win the two remaining softball matchups to have sole possession of the U.S. Highway 20 Cup. The Maple Leafs have already scored more points in the annual rivalry since it began in the 2019-2020 school year.
The teams went back and forth to start the first set until Goshen went on a 6-0 run to go up seven. The last three points of the run were all aces by
Hasan Hadzic. The Leafs went on to win 25-20.
The Pilots scored the first three points of the next set, but the Maple Leafs went up 11-8. Bethel answered back with a 6-0 run and had their best hitting percentage of any set at .235 on the way to a 25-22 win. They continued the momentum with an 8-3 lead in the third, but Goshen had an 11-1 run to go up 14-9. The Pilots never fully recovered and lost by five. After the teams were tied 12-12 in the fourth, Goshen ended it on a 13-7 run to win in four sets, their third straight win against the Pilots after losing the first-ever matchup between the programs in men's volleyball.
Goshen had 14 aces in the match, their third-highest total this season. The Leafs are 6-0 when they have nine or more aces in a match. Neither team had a particularly impressive hitting percentage. The Leafs were at .134 and the Pilots at .125.
Ishmail Bangura had 17 kills and
Hasan Hadzic had 15. Bangura led the team with ten digs and Hadzic had nine aces.
Igor Sapucaia had 38 assists and nine digs, and
Bruno Barac had nine digs as well.
Goshen (11-11, 5-8 WHAC) hosts Mount Vernon Nazarene on Friday, April 5, at 7:00 pm. They host the Cougars again the next night at 6:00 pm. Friday will be track & field senior night between the second and third sets and Saturday will be men's volleyball senior night before the match.
