PELLA, Iowa – The Bethel University volleyball team went a perfect 4-0 this weekend while competing at the Central Invitational. The Royals snapped their three-match losing streak – all which went to five sets – with a win over UW-Rivers in straight sets to open the weekend (25-18, 25-19, 25-19). BU found itself on the winning side of a five-set match defeating Wartburg (25-18, 22-25, 20-25, 25-21, 17-15). Bethel took a pair of Saturday matches 3-0 defeating North Central College (25-16, 25-14, 25-19) and Alverno College (25-8, 25-20, 25-14).

The Royals improved to 9-5 on the year and will be back in action Wednesday at Hamline before taking on Martin Luther College and UW-Superior in Superior next weekend.

Returning to her alma mater this weekend, we asked head coach Gretchen Hunt to share her thoughts on the Royals four victories this weekend in a special edition of coach's notebook.

River Falls has been a dynamic and efficient offensive team all year, so I felt very good about our defensive effort against them and the pressure we put on with our serving. Maria Claflin was unstoppable in that match, and Dominique Dabu kept a lot of balls off the floor with 26 digs in four sets. Our two setters made great choices and it was an efficient win against a really tough opponent.

The Wartburg match was definitely a back and forth battle with momentum swinging to each team at different times. We were in control of the first set and were able to get what we wanted offensively. In the second set, they put the pressure on with their serving, and kept us unbalanced for the rest of the match. We really had to keep grinding for points against what is a really good defensive team in Wartburg. Maria, Kelsie Sealock, and Hannah Wilhite were huge for us offensively, and Macie Gavic kept battling at outside hitter, which is an unfamiliar position to her. Ellie Hoyt and Hannah kept our offense balanced, and we had amazing energy from our bench. After a long day on the bus, and three five-set matches in the last seven days, it was a huge late night tournament win.

On Saturday, Allie Fauth was back on the court [returning from injury] and provided stability at the outside hitter position and as a primary passer. Hannah ran a 5-1 in the first match, and back at her familiar position on the right side, Macie had a dominant match. In the second match [against Alverno], Ellie ran a 5-1, and most of the players who traveled with us were able to play. It was really fun to see the future of our program as six freshmen played in that match at one point.

One of the really meaningful times we had in Pella was the opportunity for my former coach, Megan Clayberg, to offer some impromptu thoughts to our team. In 12 seasons, Megan had eight conference championships, seven NCAA Tournament appearances, and three national championships to her name, along with a .776 winning percentage. What she spoke about to our team was playing with joy. She reminded us that our time playing is short, make as many memories as you can, do it all with joy, no matter your role. It was special for me to hear Megan speaking to our team in that gym where I had the opportunity to make so many wonderful memories.