Ansbach sophomore Kennedy Lange goes to spike the ball in a match against the Lions on Oct. 7, 2023, at AFNORTH in Brunssum, Netherlands. going up for the block are, from left, the Lions' Adelle Bown and Bella Benedetto. (Matt Wagner/Stars and Stripes)

BRUNSSUM, Netherlands – The Ansbach volleyball team anticipates seeing the best of their opponents every match. That tends to happen when you’re the defending Division III European champion.

On Saturday at AFNORTH, though, the Cougars were to face their toughest tests this season. The top three teams in the standings in Ansbach, AFNORTH and Brussels met with big implications for seeding in the European tournament on the line.

At the end of the day, the Cougars proved they still are the top cats. They swept Brussels 25-13, 25-16, 26-24 in the morning match and followed it up with a 25-15, 25-23, 25-16 win over the host Lions in the early afternoon.

“We really wanted to prove ourselves,” Ansbach middle blocker Kennedy Lange said. “Everybody’s trying to beat us; they’re trying to take our spot. So, I feel like today we really proved we are the best in D-III.”

Coach Deb Keller-Mitchell expressed pride in the Cougars (7-0, 6-0) and their continued dominance of the division. One of those wins came at the expense of the Lions (11-1, 9-1), who won the European title in 2021.

“I like how well my girls performed,” Keller-Mitchell said. “I think they showed great mental toughness, especially because I lost six seniors last year. So, my leadership had to be rebuilt.”

One of those players stepping into a leadership role is Lange.

The sophomore sensation proved to be too much for both AFNORTH and the Brigands (6-3, 6-3). Against Brussels, Lange had 10 kills, six digs and five aces, while she totaled 11 kills and six aces against the Lions.

The Cougars turned to her at times when they needed a spark. One such moment came in the third set against Brussels with Ansbach trailing 14-7. Lange had three kills from that point as the Cougars went on a 15-6 run to take a two-point advantage. Ansbach held on to seal the win.

Then in the second set against AFNORTH, Lange once again started a big run with her team trailing 18-11. She slammed a kill and then served two aces as the Cougars scored six straight points.

Ansbach recorded another six-point run to take a 23-19 lead and eventually sealed the set.

“She is invaluable,” Keller-Mitchell said of Lange. “She’s super mature on the court, and she’s a great leader for our team. She does things without even knowing how great she is.”

The Cougars also got a major bounce back in the second match in their serving.

While committing 11 service errors in the Brussels match, Ansbach dropped 20 aces on the Lions. To go with Lange’s six, Trinity Batin had four, as did Kyla Tuazon. Tuazon’s four were part of an 8-0 run midway through the third set to give Ansbach a nine-point advantage.

“I wasn’t really expecting that, especially because against Brussels we had missed so many,” Keller-Mitchell said of the aces against AFNORTH. “I’m really pleased with how they came back and served so aggressively, especially after missing some and getting a little chewing from me on the sideline.”

Ansbach's Natalie Ritter sets the ball in an Oct. 7, 2023, match against the Lions at AFNORTH in Brunssum, Netherlands. (Matt Wagner/Stars and Stripes)

Ansbach’s Laila McIntyre prepares to bat away a ball during a match against Brussels on Oct. 7, 2023, at AFNORTH International School in Brunssum, Netherlands. Watching in the background is teammate Kyla Tuazon. (Matt Wagner/Stars and Stripes)

AFNORTH's Selah Skariah leaps to attack the ball during the Lions' match with Ansbach on Oct. 7, 2023, at AFNORTH International School in Brunssum, Netherlands. (Matt Wagner/Stars and Stripes)

AFNORTH's Avery Sweeney serves during the Lions' Oct. 7, 2023, match against Ansbach at AFNORTH International School in Brunssum, Netherlands. (Matt Wagner/Stars and Stripes)

Brussels libero Tessa Wedekind bumps the ball during the Brigands' Oct. 7, 2023, match against Ansbach at AFNORTH International School in Brunssum, Netherlands. (Matt Wagner/Stars and Stripes)

Ansbach's Trinity Batin dinks the ball at the net in a match against Brussels on Oct. 7, 2023, at AFNORTH International School in Brunssum, Netherlands. The Brigands' Grace Mamikonian, gets ready to jump for a block. (Matt Wagner/Stars and Stripes)

After losing its first match to the Cougars, AFNORTH looked in trouble early against Brussels before winning the match 21-25, 25-21, 25-16, 25-17. The Brigands used a 9-3 run during the middle of the first set to take a 22-18 lead that they didn’t relinquish before getting that win.

Even early in the second set, Brussels came back from a four-point deficit to take a 15-14 lead. A couple of kills and aces by Avery Sweeney helped turn the tide, and the Lions took control of the set.

They didn’t look back after that, pulling away in the middle of the third set on a 14-1 run and doing the same on a smaller scale in the fourth set with a 5-0 run that gave the Lions a seven-point lead.

AFNORTH started to get players including Sophia Mier, Richele Reyes and Selah Skariah going. Mier had six of her seven kills in the final two sets, and Reyes and Skariah each posted three of their five kills in the final set.

While AFNORTH coach Chris Guest praised his team’s ability to recover from its first loss of the season, he also mentioned Saturday showed how much the Lions need to improve.

“This is the first time that we’ve seen Ansbach in almost two years,” Guest said. “We have some things that we need to work on, but right now, Ansbach is the No. 1 in the division. We have to figure out how to get through them.”

Although the Brigands dropped both matches, coach Courtney Slack had plenty of positives to take away.

First, Brussels played its best in the last set against Ansbach, pushing them to a tiebreaker. Then, the Brigands picked up a set against the hosts, thanks in large part to Kathleen and Patricia Rullan. Kathleen amassed 20 kills in the second match, including eight in the first set, and Patricia complemented her sister with nine.

Slack said her players have posted more wins than in previous seasons, buoying their spirits on the court.

“The girls have come so far,” Slack said. “In the past two years, we’re not used to winning very frequently, and this year, we’re winning. We’re a very young team; we’re still growing.”