The Hillsdale College volleyball team capped a stellar opening weekend of play with a sweep of Quincy on Saturday in Detroit, closing the Wayne State Warrior Invite with a perfect 3-0 record.

Strong all-around play and clutch performances late in sets were the difference for the Chargers against the Hawks, as Hillsdale outhit Quincy .215 to .107, and edged out the Hawks in kills, aces and blocks.

The lead changed several times in a back-and-forth set one as both teams struggled for control. Trailing 17-15, the Chargers used a 6-0 run that included a kill and ace by freshman Ella Vandermark and a kill and solo block by Molly Kennedy to take a 21-17 edge. Hillsdale held on to the lead from there, with a kill by Caroline Lanicek and an ace by Ella Byrum securing the 25-22 victory.

Hillsdale led wire-to-wire in set two, riding a 5-0 run to start the match all the way to a 25-17 victory to go up two sets to none on Quincy. Ellie Fles had three kills late to extinguish a late attempt by the Hawks to get back in the set, including set point.

Desperate to stay in the match, Quincy ran out to a big lead in set three. The Chargers looked to be in deep trouble in the set, trailing 23-18 and just two points away from letting the Hawks back in the match, but Hillsdale dug deep with a 6-1 run to tie the set at 24-all. Then, after Quincy got a kill to pull back ahead, the Chargers closed out the set and the match with three straight kills, including back-to-back points from Maddie Krappmann, to secure the victory.

Fles capped a stellar weekend with her second double-double in a row, finishing with 13 kills and 11 digs to lead the Chargers offensively. Vandermark continued a strong start to her collegiate career with eight kills, two service aces and three total blocks, while Krappmann finished the final two sets with six kills and Kennedy added five kills and three total blocks as well for the Chargers.

Grace Drake led a strong attack for the Chargers with 35 assists, seven digs and two aces, while libero Chloe Pierce paced the Chargers defense with 21 digs and two aces. Ella Byrum added 10 digs and two aces in the back row as well for Hillsdale.

The Chargers are 3-0 on the season and off to the program's best start in a full campaign since 2017. Hillsdale will look to keep rolling in the non-conference portion of the season next Friday, traveling to Kenosha, Wisconsin for four matches in the Parkside Invite, starting with a tough match against RV Nova Southeastern at 11 a.m. CT on Friday.