LIBERTY – Liberty hosted Goshen Wednesday night for its third volleyball match of the season and its home opener. The young Redhawks squad was looking to build momentum in front of the home crowd. Liberty showed plenty of fight throughout the match, but a strong Goshen team ultimately came away with a three-set sweep.

Goshen established control early in the first set. After Liberty answered the visitors’ opening two points with three straight points to take a 3-2 lead, Goshen responded with a 10-point run. A Liberty timeout briefly stopped the action, but Goshen picked up where it left off and continued to pull away for a 25-7 win.

Liberty came out stronger in the second set, trading points with Goshen through the early going. Neither side was able to pull ahead until Goshen put together a six-point run and eventually doubled Liberty’s score at 14-7.

The Redhawks weren’t giving up easily. With the home crowd getting louder after each point, Liberty put together its best stretch of the night, scoring seven points while Goshen managed just four to cut the deficit to 18-14. Goshen answered the challenge, however, turning up the pressure late and closing out the second set 25-16.

After improving considerably in the second set, Liberty looked to carry that momentum into the third. Goshen had other plans, coming out strong and building an early advantage with 12 points to Liberty’s four.

Liberty eventually locked in and rattled off a six-point run to close the gap. The teams battled back and forth from there, with Goshen still holding a 21-15 advantage. Liberty continued fighting and managed to cut the deficit to four, but Goshen delivered the final points it needed to take the set 25-20 and complete the sweep.

“It was a great game, and we competed really well,” Liberty coach Macy Shamro said. “We have a young squad this year, but they came out with great energy. It was an awesome home opener. It was amazing to compete with Goshen. I know they’re a great team.”