Schedule
Northwood (7-9, 2-5 G-MAC) at Hillsdale (6-10, 4-3 G-MAC) | 7 p.m. ET Friday, Oct. 24 | Dawn Tibbetts Potter Arena | Hillsdale, MI
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Live Stats & Video
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Additional Info
Hillsdale Roster |
Northwood Roster |
Hillsdale Stats |
Northwood Stats |
G-MAC Stats |
G-MAC Standings
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Players to Watch
Hillsdale:Â
#1 Ella Byrum, rFr., DS/L, Kokomo, IN/Northwestern (7th G-MAC in D/S);
#2 Jenna Southland, So., MH, Three Rivers, MI/Three Rivers (6th G-MAC in B/S);
#9 Adi Sysum, Sr., MH, Eaton Rapids, MI/Eaton Rapids (1st G-MAC in hitting %, 8th in B/S);
#15 Josie TeSlaa, Sr., S/DS, Hudsonville, MI/Unity Christian (7th G-MAC in A/S)
Northwood: #6 Laney Kokaly, Jr., DS, Essexville, MI/Garber (3rd G-MAC in D/S);
#7 Renee Brines, Sr., S, Cadillac, MI/Cadillac (4th G-MAC in A/S);
#12 Sage Kissman, Sr., OH, Mason, MI/Mason/Ashland (3rd G-MAC in K/S, 5th in P/S);
#17 Mackenzie Scheid, So., MB, Coldwater, MI/Coldwater (2nd G-MAC in SA/S)
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Scouting the Opposition
Northwood: The Timberwolves enter Friday night's contest with ground to make up as both Northwood and Hillsdale maneuver for a G-MAC Tournament berth. A Chargers win in five sets at Northwood in September has given Hillsdale an edge in the standings the Timberwolves are hoping to erase.
Like Hillsdale, Northwood was hit hard by roster attrition in the offseason, losing three of their top four hitters including the 2024 G-MAC Player of the Year. The lone returner, senior Sage Kissman, has been one of the top offensive players in the G-MAC so far, but Northwood has struggled to consistently support her with secondary attackers at the net. Junior Olivia Nester and sophomore Clara Gyomory are the other contributors on the outside, while in the middle, Mackenzie Scheid returns and sophomore Soleil Allen has emerged as a major contributor defensively.
In the backrow, junior Laney Kokaly stepped in at libero and has performed admirably for the Timberwolves, while freshman Ava Thomas also has contributed in her first season. Fourth-year starter Renee Brines is one of the G-MAC's top setters and continues to be a key leader for Northwood, though it's tougher sledding this season with the reduction in firepower up front so far.
While Northwood has been a consistent contender in the G-MAC, the Timberwolves have struggled against the Chargers over the last decade and are looking to snap a 13-match losing streak to Hillsdale that dates to 2013 this Friday.
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Scouting the Chargers
Hillsdale had a difficult Midwest Region Crossover that saw the Chargers go 0-3, albeit with the three matches coming against the GLVC and GLIAC co-leaders, as well as a Wayne St. team that made the crossover championship game. Despite the tough weekend, Hillsdale returns to conference play still above .500 and with a real shot at making a run and setting themselves up with a favorable G-MAC Tourney matchup at the end of the year.
On an otherwise inexperienced team, Hillsdale does return three key contributors who played major roles in seasons past: seniorÂ
Adi Sysum, who was part of the team's middle hitter rotation and finished fourth on the Chargers in points and second in blocks in 2024, seniorÂ
Josie TeSlaa, who was one of the team's two setters in Hillsdale's 6-2 lineup and played in every match last year, and juniorÂ
Chloe Pierce, who played an important role in the back row for the Chargers last season.
Retooling the front row will be a priority for Hillsdale as the Chargers lose several key contributors on the attack. Along with Sysum, Hillsdale also is giving more opportunities to sophomores
Caroline Lanicek,
Hannah Baker andÂ
Jenna Southland, while junior
Molly Kennedy has had a bigger role in recent weeks as well. In recent weeks, the Chargers also got
Ellie Fles back in the lineup after she missed several matches with an injury, and the sophomore has been a game-changer as well for the Hillsdale attack with several double-doubles.
Marcelina Gorny also made her season debut after recovering from an injury to add to Hillsdale's front row as well.
Two players who missed the 2024 season with injuries are already making big contributions. JuniorÂ
Emory Braswell was second on the team in kills in 2023 before missing all of 2024, and is getting ample playing time on the outside . Redshirt freshmanÂ
Ella Byrum was pushing hard for playing time in the back row in the 2024 preseason as well before suffering a season-ending injury, and now that she's healthy has taken on the starting libero role for the Chargers. Freshmen
Madison Peal and
Grace Drake are regulars for the Chargers as well, and
Taylor Cook also has contributed.
Coaching the Chargers for the 30
th year is
Chris Gravel, who's built Hillsdale's program from the ground up and into one of the top programs in the Midwest Region. Under Gravel, the Chargers have won 11 conference regular season titles, 10 conference tournament titles, made 16 NCAA Division II tournament appearances, won the Midwest Regional title in 2011 and 2021, and reached the NCAA DII Final Four in 2011 while making the Elite Eight round in 2021.
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Other Notes
- Friday's volleyball match is another opportunity for Hillsdale and Northwood to earn points in the competition to claim "The Jack" for the 2025-26 school year. The Jack is an all-sports trophy contested by the Chargers and Timberwolves on an annual basis where each team gets a point for winning a head-to-head matchup or for finishing higher in the conference championship in sports without head-to-head matchups. The trophy is named in honor of two legendary athletic directors – Hillsdale's Jack McAvoy and Northwood's Jack Finn. The Chargers currently possess the trophy after outcompeting Northwood in the 2024-25 school year and are looking to hang on to it for 2025-26. The two teams are currently tied in the standings at one point apiece thanks to a volleyball win for Hillsdale and a football win for Northwood.
- Hillsdale posted its best-ever year in the classroom in 2024-25, with the highest cumulative GPA in program history and the top cumulative GPA among all Hillsdale College athletics teams. Two returning starters for Hillsdale played a big role in that accomplishment, as senior Josie TeSlaa and junior Chloe Pierce each earned CSC Academic All-District honors for their performance in the classroom last season.
- Entering his 30th season at Hillsdale, Chris Gravel has proved himself as one of the elite college volleyball coaches in the country. His 637 AVCA-recognized victories rank 10th among all active coaches at the NCAA DII level, and his .690 winning percentage ranks 25th, and 11th among active coaches with 20 or more campaigns. He is one of just 10 active NCAA DII coaches with 600 or more wins in his career.
- The healthy return of sophomore outside hitter Ellie Fles has been huge for the Chargers offensively in the last three weeks. Fles came up big in Hillsdale's sweep of previous G-MAC unbeaten Thomas More three weekends ago, leading the Chargers with 11 kills and adding 10 digs for her first career double-double. The sophomore then exploded for a career high 21 kills and 13 digs for another double-double in a win over Tiffin last week. Her 2.88 kills per set currently leads the Chargers. The threat of Fles as an attacker also is creating more opportunities for players like Caroline Lanicek and Emory Braswell to impact the match on the outside.
- Senior Adi Sysum has been an important weapon upfront for the Chargers so far and earned G-MAC North Division Player of the Week on Oct. 6 for helping Hillsdale sweep both matches of its Kentucky trip. A middle hitter, Sysum has been efficient on offense, hitting a G-MAC leading .396, with a Hillsdale best 2.46 kills per set, and has been a key player defensively, with 0.92 blocks per set, the eighth best mark in conference play and second for the Chargers.
- Sysum's counterpart in the middle hitter rotation, Jenna Southland, is emerging as an impact player in her own right. Southland is developing into a strong front row defensive player in the conference, currently ranking sixth in the G-MAC with 0.93 blocks per set and leading the Chargers in that stat.
- Family ties play an interesting role for the Hillsdale College volleyball team this year, with several players following in the footsteps of family members who played Charger athletics. Two Hillsdale players have older siblings who are or were Chargers – libero Chloe Pierce's older sister, Sophia, is a former Hillsdale women's basketball player, front row player Adi Sysum is the younger sister of former women's basketball player Arianna Sysum, and setter Josie TeSlaa is the younger sister of former Charger football player and current Detroit Lion Isaac TeSlaa.