After nearly a month on the road, the Hillsdale College volleyball team was welcomed home by a big and well-dressed crowd Friday night, and that crowd saw the team extend its home and conference winning streaks.
The Chargers, ranked 16th in the nation, defeated Ohio Dominican 3-1 at the Dawn Tibbetts Potter Arena. The win makes Hillsdale 17-3 overall and 6-0 in conference play. Hillsdale is off Saturday before returning to the road, heading south next weekend.
Holding out several starters due to nagging injuries, the Chargers deployed a much younger lineup than they normally would. That lineup struggled to find its way at times, but got into a nice rhythm in the fourth set in particular. Hillsdale won the sets by scores of 25-17, 25-13, 21-25 and 25-15.
At times, Hillsdale had a team on the floor minus four regular starters. But other players stepped forward and carried more responsibility in leading the Chargers to the win.
Sophomore Karoline Shelton set a new career-high with 21 digs to go along with 15 kills, which also led the team. Senior Taylor Wiese was her usual active self on defense, leading the team with 25 digs in the match.
Sophomore Maggie DePorre flexed her muscles and combined power with efficiency, finishing with 11 kills and a .435 hitting percentage.
Senior Dani Jones also set a new career-high with 10 kills and did a nice job of mixing up her attack attempts, keeping the defense off-guard.
Junior setter Lindsey Mertz had 27 assists in her two sets and change worth of work. Freshman setter Madeline Zenas was able to get extended time on the floor and had 17 assists in her two sets of action. Freshman Audrey Riley added three service aces along with 9 digs on the night.
PHOTO: Camryn Olson