It has now been exactly one calendar year since the Hillsdale College volleyball team lost a Great Midwest Athletic Conference match.
That impressive streak continued Saturday afternoon in Columbus, Ohio, as the Chargers swept Ohio Dominican University 3-0, improving to 8-3 overall and 5-0 in G-MAC play.
The Chargers' 20 consecutive conference wins is an ongoing G-MAC record, one the team hopes to continue when it plays a pair of home matches next Friday and Saturday across homecoming weekend.
Hillsdale wore ODU down throughout the match, limiting the Panthers to worse hitting percentages in each set. ODU opened by hitting a respectable .242 in the first set, but that number dropped to .111 in the second and .097 in the third set. Hillsdale won the three sets by scores of 25-15, 25-18 and 25-16.
The Chargers were able to work through much of the roster through the rotation in the match. Ten different players recorded kills, led by nine apiece from senior Kara Vyletel and junior Hannah Gates. Junior middle hitter Veronica O'Connor reached a season-high with 5 kills with a .444 hitting percentage for the Chargers.
Sophomore setter Lindsey Mertz piled up 35 assists and 7 digs, while junior Taylor Wiese led the defense with 12 digs. Six different players had 6 or more digs for Hillsdale.
Photo: Todd Lancaster