Box Score 1 |
Box Score 2 |
Box Score 3 Friday Recap
Hillsdale 3, Merrimack 0
Hillsdale 3, Cedarville 1
The Hillsdale College volleyball team got what it wanted out of its first day of match action Friday. Two wins, but with some resistance from its opponents, Merrimack and Cedarville.
The Chargers went 2-0 on the first day of the Tony Banner Invitational, hosted by Clarion (Pa.) University, defeating Merrimack 3-0 and Cedarville 3-1. The Chargers take on host Clarion and Gannon in a pair of Saturday matches.
In Friday's opener, the Chargers finished strong in all three sets, winning by scores of 25-19, 25-9 and 25-12. Hillsdale polished off set two on a 13-2 run, then scored the final 12 points of set three to earn the sweep.
The Chargers outblocked Merrimack as a team 9-0, and limited their opposition to a team hitting percentage of -.045. Three players – Kyra Rodi, Kara Vyletel and Erin Holsinger – each had 4 block assists in the win. Junior outside hitter Jackie Langer had an impressive Hillsdale debut with a team-high 13 kills in the three-set sweep. Vyletel added 8 while sophomore Paige VanderWall pitched in with 7 kills.
Friday's second match was a tougher test for the Chargers against a team that will be one of their rivals when they move to the Great Midwest Athletic Conference next year. Cedarville, traditionally one of the strongest teams in the G-MAC, responded from a 25-18 loss in set one to top Hillsdale 25-18 in set two, evening the match.
But the Chargers dug deep and showed heart in wins of 25-19 and 25-20 in the final two sets to clinch the 3-1 win.
Vyletel started the match off hot and didn't cool down much, tying her career-high with 15 kills. Rodi also set a career-high with 8 kills, many of them coming in the latter half of the match.
Holsinger was dominant at the net, notching 13 kills with 2 solo blocks and 2 block assists. VanderWall was incredibly efficient and effective, finishing with 9 kills and a .350 hitting percentage for the Chargers.
Sophomore setter Taylor Bennett set career-highs in assists in each match, recording 30 versus Merrimack, then coming back with 48 against the Jackets.
Four players had 11 or more digs in the win over Cedarville, led by freshmen Taylor Wiese (14) and Emily Lachmann (13). Langer had 13 digs to go along with 7 kills, while Vyletel picked up her first double-double of the season with 11 digs.
Saturday Recap
In Saturday's first match, the Chargers struggled to find an offensive rhythm, and lost to Gannon in straight sets, 27-25, 25-17, 25-18.
Hillsdale hit .040 as a team in the match, thanks in part to an impressive blocking performance by the Golden Knights. Gannon had three players with between 5 and 9 block assists in the match.
Vyletel had 12 kills while VanderWall added 7.
Whatever ills plagued the Chargers in the first match were cured by the second one of the day Saturday. Hillsdale ran a much sharper offense, and had a .298 hitting percentage en route to sweeping Clarion University 3-0. Set scores were 25-22, 27-25, 25-21.
Seniro
Erin Holsinger, who was named to the All-Tournament Team, had 11 kills, 3 block assists and a .429 hitting percentage to spark the offense in the win. Vyletel racked up 14 more kills, putting a cap on an extremely productive weekend for Hillsdale.
VanderWall was once again strong from her right-side position with 9 kills for the Chargers. Bennett handed out 44 assists in the win, and Vyletel led the defense with 14 digs.
