The first leg of an important weekend road trip is in the books for the Hillsdale College volleyball team -- and it goes down as a success.

Hillsdale swept past host Ursuline 25-12, 26-24, 25-20 to improve to 6-3 in G-MAC play, and move close to locking up a spot in the G-MAC Tourney. 

The Chargers started the match hot, rolling to a set one victory and an early lead. Hillsdale hit .455 with 17 kills in the first set to overpower the Arrows, scoring the first seven points of the match and never looking back.

Ursuline struck back hard in set two, leading by as much as 16-10 at one point. Hillsdale reeled Ursuline back in over the back half of the set, and a mini 5-0 run capped by a Chloe Pierce ace turned a deficit into a 22-19 lead. The Arrows came back to tie the set at 24, but Hillsdale got a kill from Grace Drake and back-to-back points to secure the winning margin and go up 2-0.

With a chance to close out the match, Hillsdale led for much of set three, but a desperate Ursuline team fought hard to stay within striking distance and never let the Chargers get comfortable. Four kills by Hannah Baker in the back half of the set, including the match clincher, helped Hillsdale secure the victory.

The Chargers put on a balanced performance offensively to secure the win, led by Drake, who continued a recent run of impressive performances with nine kills, 16 assists and two service aces against the Arrows. Baker chipped in eight kills and seven digs for Hillsdale, and senior Adi Sysum added eight kills as well. Jenna Southland and Caroline Lanicek each finished with seven kills also for the Chargers.

Chloe Pierce led Hillsdale defensively with 10 digs and two aces, and Josie TeSlaa also finished with 24 assists to lead the Chargers, as well as six digs.

Hillsdale improves to 8-10 overall with the victory, and plays again tomorrow at Ashland at 6 p.m. The Chargers remain just a game off a top four spot in the standings and a potential home quarterfinal game in the G-MAC Tournament, but Ashland is close behind Hillsdale and a real competitor for one of those spots, making Friday's contest a must-win for both teams.