BOWDLE – Aberdeen Christian made it four wins in its last five matches Thursday with a straight-sets sweep of North Central, winning by set scores of 25-20, 25-21 and 25-18 in a Lake Region Conference volleyball match.

The win was the Knights’ second straight sweep, as they moved to 5-11 on the year.

And, for the second straight match, it was the team’s ability to handle the serve that helped key the victory.

“The girls played great defense tonight, receiving at a 94 percent rate,” said Christian coach Sara Powell. “This is something we have really been working hard at so it’s nice to see it come together.”

On the flip side, the Knights racked up nine aces to keep North Central off balance and out of system. Jolie Fogarty, Payton Skarin and Sawyer Schwan combined for seven of those nine aces.

Skarin and senior Chlow Bosma finished with six kills apiece, while Alexis Isakson had 35 digs to pace Christian’s defensive efforts.

“Both of my outsides had a great night of hitting with Jolie and Payton keeping the energy going on the service line,” Powell said. “These girls have played a lot of volleyball this week, and they have definitely shown me that they are fighters.”

The Knights will get only a brief respite before resuming non-conference play on Saturday at the James Valley Christian tournament in Huron.

Serving: Aberdeen Christian 64-73 9 aces (Jolie Fogarty 11-12 3 aces, Payton Skarin 13-14 2 aces, Sawyer Schwan 18-19 2 aces).

Hitting: Aberdeen Christian 100-125 23 kills (Chloe Bosma 27-27 6 kills, Skarin 24-30 6 kills, Eilene Hulscher 7-10 3 kills).

Setting: Aberdeen Christian 122-122 23 assists (Schwan 61-61 13 assists, Fogarty 46-46 10 assists).

Digs: Aberdeen Christian 95 (Alexis Isakson 35, Skarin 13, Fogarty 12, Bosma 12).

Blocks: Aberdeen Christian 3 (Ari Johnson 2, Fogarty 1, Sophia Eichler 1).

Records: Aberdeen Christian 5-11; North Central 8-10.

North Central stats not reported