St. Bede sophomore middle blocker Kijah Lucas caught fire in the third set of Thursday’s Tri-County Conference volleyball match against rival Marquette at Bader Gym in Ottawa.

Lucas posted five of her team-best eight kills and added a pair of blocks in the final set.

The spark helped the Bruins (6-2-1, 2-0) bounce back for a 22-25, 25-21, 25-14 victory over the Crusaders (3-5, 1-1).

“I just really wanted to win, and I know my teammates did as well,” Lucas said. “We didn’t play great in the first set, but we were able to get things back on track.

“In the third set I just felt like I got into a little bit of a zone. I was playing with confidence. I’m just glad I could help my team win.”

The third set saw the team’s tied at 5 before a four-point service run, including aces by St. Bede’s Nelle Potthoff and Lucas, pushed the Bruins out to a 15-6 lead and on the way to clinching the match.

“I feel like we came into this match very nervous despite having seven seniors on the team, but I think that was also due to the rivalry,” St. Bede coach Nicole Trenka said. “We were swinging for the fences early, looking for the big kills, but that’s adrenaline.

“We maybe took a little longer than we should have to settle down but once we did, I thought we played well. The girls got into a rhythm and started worrying about what we were doing more than what Marquette was doing.

“Kijah really stepped for us in that third set. She sparked us.”

The hosts trailed 16-11 in the first set before a 10-point service run — including a trio of aces and two kills by Kelsey Cuchra — by Kinley Rick. The visitors came back to tie the set at 22, but another Cuchra kill and two Bruins’ hitting errors gave the Cru the upper hand.

Marquette roared to a 6-0 advantage in the second set on the serving of Rick, but a four-point burst by Lily Bosnich, and later an ace gave St. Bede a 20-17 lead. With the set knotted at 21, kills by Lila Koehler and Hanna Waszkowiak and a block by Lucas helped send the match to a third and deciding set.

“I think St. Bede just figured us out in that third set,” Marquette coach Mindy McConnaughhay said. “That, and we got stuck in rotation during a couple of their runs and ultimately just ran out of gas.

“Our first two sets tonight were some of the most aggressive and best we’ve played this season, so to see us make a few mistakes in the third set that cost us was a little dissapointing. But we’ll bounce back, learn from tonight and continue to work on getting better.”

After Lucas on the stat sheet, Potthoff had four kills, four aces and 11 points, Waszkowiak three kills and five points, and Jillian Pinter and Hannah Heiberger three kills each. Bosnich finished with 14 points, three aces and 22 digs, while Koehler and Ava Balestri each had 14 assists.

For Marquette, Rick and Cuchra each had seven kills, with the former posting 18 points and four aces. Kaitlyn Davis added four kills and Lucy McGrath three winners for the home team.

Both squads are back in action on Monday with St. Bede traveling to take on Bureau Valley, while Marquette hosts Reed-Custer.

Lily Bosnich 22 digs

Lila Koehler and Ava Balestri 14 assists each.