Buchanan tops Dowagiac for Coloma championship

Published 2:35 pm Monday, October 11, 2021

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COLOMA — After splitting with Dowagiac in pool play at the Coloma Invitational, the Buchanan Bucks got their revenge by defeating the Chieftains for the tournament championship Saturday.

The Bucks (23-6) won the opening set against Dowagiac in pool play 25-17, but the Chieftains rebounded to take the second set 25-22. Buchanan opened pool play with a 25-13 and 25-19 win over Lakeshore before splitting with Saugatuck 25-9, 17-25 in its final match.

Dowagiac advanced to the tournament round by splitting all three matches in pool play against Saugatuck (19-25, 25-17), Buchanan and Lakeshore (17-25, 25-22).

In the quarterfinals, the Bucks defeated Lawton 25-17 and 25-12 before defeating Lakeshore again, this time 25-18 and 25-20.

The Chieftains (16-10-6) defeated host Coloma in the quarterfinals 25-21 and 25-10, before knocking off Brandywine in the semifinals 21-25, 25-13 and 15-8.

In the championship match, Buchanan swept Dowagiac 25-17 and 25-23.

“On Saturday, I thought we played really consistent all day long,” said Buchanan Coach Shelly Bossert. “Our serve receive was on, so we were able to get some fast kills. It was a long day of volleyball, and I am proud of how they mentally stayed in the games all the way until the end of the day. Josie West played extremely well for us. She had great passes and was able to put the ball away all day long.”

Buchanan hosts St. Joseph in non-conference volleyball tonight. Play is set to begin at 6 p.m.

Dowagiac coach Tony Hooley was not pleased with the way his team played, but admired how they battled.

“It was a roller coaster kind of day,” he said. “Sloppy and inconsistent would best describe our day. Other than the Coloma match, we couldn’t put together two complete 25-point sets against anyone else. Serving has been a strength all season, but today wasn’t our best effort in that phase. But, I will get them credit for clawing their way to the finals, especially during a long and tiring homecoming week.”

Dowagiac heads to Edwardsburg Thursday for a Wolverine Conference match scheduled to begin at 6 p.m.

The Bobcats reached the semifinals by going 3-0 in pool play against Lawton (25-20, 25-15), Coloma (25-22, 25-19) and River Valley (25-20, 25-17). In the quarterfinals, Brandywine defeated Saugatuck 26-24 and 25-21.

The Bobcats are now 20-11-2 on the season heading into Wednesday’s BSC Athletic Conference match at Berrien Springs. Play is scheduled to begin at 6 p.m.