The Hillsdale College women's volleyball team saw its 21-match G-MAC Tournament winning streak come to an end in heartbreaking fashion on Friday evening, as the top-seeded Chargers fell by the slimmest of margins to fourth-seeded Findlay in a five-set loss at home in the G-MAC Semifinal round.

Hillsdale trailed 1-0 after the first set and was down 2-1 and trailing 15-11 in what could have been a closeout fourth set for the Oilers, but Hillsdale showed great heart in battling back from deficits throughout the match, using a 6-0 run to seize the lead and then pulling away in the fourth set to force a deciding fifth set. 

Much like the rest of the match itself, the fifth set was a tense and back-and-forth affair, with long rallies and several lead changes. Late in the set, Hillsdale had clawed a slight advantage on an Ellie Fles kill to go up 13-12 and sit just two points away from advancing to an eighth-straight championship match. It was not to be, however, as Findlay scored three straight points to close out Hillsdale and end the Chargers' run of seven straight G-MAC titles with a 15-13 fifth set victory.

The stats reflect a tight match, with Findlay holding a slight edge in kills but the Chargers finishing with 14 blocks to the Oilers' eight. Ultimately, Findlay was slightly better on pressure points when it counted most to pull out a high-level match from both squads.

Senior Marilyn Popplewell led Hillsdale with 15 kills, 11 digs and four total blocks, and fellow senior Lauren Passaglia just missed a triple double with 14 kills, 18 assists, three block assists and nine digs.

Hillsdale's middle hitters had a strong match. Senior Maizie Brown finished with 11 kills and five total blocks on .381 hitting for the Chargers, while Adi Sysum chipped in seven kills on .385 hitting and six total blocks as well.

Ellie Fles added 11 kills for the Chargers, Amanda Hilliker led Hillsdale defensively with 21 digs, and Josie TeSlaa chipped in a career-high 36 assists and two aces as well.

While the loss ends a historic run and surely stings for Hillsdale, at 22-4 overall, the Chargers still have a good chance of being selected for an at-large bid to their seventh-straight NCAA Tournament. The field will be announced on NCAA.com on Monday at 7:30 p.m., with Hillsdale looking to grab one of eight available spots in the Midwest Region.

Photo by Kenneth Gaudet