Broncbusters crush Cloud; move into third place

Concordia, KS-Garden City continues to climb up the standings. 

Jelena Milovanovic had 12 kills, Tola Maczka added 31 assists, and Garden City moved into sole possession of third place in the Jayhawk, 25-20, 25-19, 25-17 victory over Cloud County at Arley Bryant Gymnasium on Wednesday night. The Broncbusters, which won their fourth straight match, improving to 17-9 overall and 7-5 in the conference.  

"I felt like we had a very business-like attitude tonight," Head Coach, Patrick Hiltz said. "Our energy could have been a little higher throughout, but the focus was there the entire match." 

Apolline Lepuissant had 16 digs, and Vitoria Stedile had nine and a team-bet four service aces. Garden City recorded 10 as a team. 

"Our serving was very good, and ultimately we played a very intelligent match," Hiltz explained. "It can be very difficult to play at a high level after a four-hour bus ride, but we were able to put the drive behind us and pick up a very strong road win at a place that is very tough to play at." 

The Broncbusters broke open the first set with a 6-0 run capped by Milovanovic's kill that made it 16-11. The sophomore added a beautiful attack through middle followed by a powerful kill, Pinar Dugeroglu tapped one over the net, and Milovanovic finished things off with a crosscourt hit that put Garden City up, 1-0. 

"I'm proud of our girls for maintaining such an intense focus tonight," Hiltz added.

Garden City dominated in the second set building a 16-9 advantage. After the Thunderbirds trimmed the lead to three, Dugeroglu responded with a pair of kills, Gaby Santos rejected a Cloud County attack, and Julia Brazil finished through the middle for a 23-16 cushion. A double-contact violation on the Thunderbirds ended the set. 

"We were consistent the entire game," Hiltz said. "We knew what we had to do." 

The Broncbusters didn't mess around in the third, pushing out to a double-digit lead thanks to a beautiful pass from Stedile that set up Milovanovic for a kill and a 19-9 advantage. Dugeroglu and Brazil combined for back-to-back kills before Dugeroglu closed the match with an emphatic swing to give Garden City one of its most impressive road victories of the season. 

Dugeroglu and Brazil each had two aces apiece for Garden City. Maczka and Milovanovic chipped in seven digs.