It's been a long wait -- 413 days, to be exact -- since the last time the Hillsdale College volleyball team took the court for a match.
The Chargers were slated to chase a fourth-straight G-MAC crown in the fall of 2020, but the Covid-19 pandemic forced the indefinite postponement of the team's season.
Thankfully, instead of cancelling the sport for the 2020-21 school year, Hillsdale still will get the chance to compete for a championship, as the G-MAC has shifted the sport to the winter for a modified schedule.
So, for the first time in program history, we'll have volleyball in January as the Chargers look to continue their winning ways in conference play. The season begins with home matches this Friday and Saturday against visiting Trevecca Nazarene and Kentucky Wesleyan.
You can follow along at home on the Great Midwest Digital Network with our live stats and webcast from this weekend's matches. You can find those links below.
Schedule
Trevecca Nazarene (0-0, 0-0 G-MAC) at #12 Hillsdale (0-0, 0-0 G-MAC) | 7:00 p.m. Friday, Jan. 22 | Dawn Tibbetts Potter Arena | Hillsdale, MI
Kentucky Wesleyan (0-0, 0-0 G-MAC) at #12 Hillsdale (0-0, 0-0 G-MAC) | 1:00 p.m. Saturday, Jan. 23 | Dawn Tibbetts Potter Arena | Hillsdale, MI
Follow/Watch
Live Stats vs Trevecca | Webcast vs Trevecca | Live Stats vs KWC | Webcast vs KWC
Additional Info
Hillsdale Roster | Trevecca Roster | KWC Roster | 2019 Hillsdale Stats | 2019 Trevecca Stats | 2019 KWC Stats
Players to Watch
Hillsdale: #9 Alyssa Van Wienen, Sr., MH, Grand Rapids, MI/Christian (2019 All-American, G-MAC POY, G-MAC Female Athlete of the Year); #15 Lindsey Mertz, Sr., S, Frankenmuth, MI/Frankenmuth (2019 1st Team All-G-MAC, 2nd Team All-Midwest); #7 Karoline Shelton, Jr., OH, Shawnee, KS/Mission South 2019 (2019 1st Team All-G-MAC, 2nd Team All-Region); #10 Maggie DePorre, Jr., OH, Troy, MI/Birmingham Marian (2019 2nd Team All-G-MAC)
Trevecca: #8 Austyn Baldwin, Jr, MB, Kingston Springs, TN/Harpeth (2019 1st Team All-G-MAC); #16 Ellie Buffler, So., OH, Nashville, TN/Hume-Fogg (2019 2nd Team All-G-MAC, G-MAC Freshman of the Year); #22 Chloee McDaniel, So., S, Hendersonville, TN/Beech, Missouri St. University (led Trojans in assists per set in 2019); #4 Claire Hindman, Jr., DS/L, Westfield, IN/Westfield (led Trojans in digs per set in 2019)
Kentucky Wesleyan: #14 Danielle Brouillette, Sr., MH, Stuart, FL/South Fork (2019 2nd Team All-G-MAC); #10 Nicole Martin, So., OH, Greendale, WI/Greendale (led Panthers in kills per set in 2019); #13 Nilah Roy, Sr., OH, Belleville, IN/Mascoutah (led Panthers in digs per set in 2019); #11 Maggie Vincent, So., DS/L, Henderson, KY/Henderson County (Appeared in 93 sets for Panthers in 2019).
Scouting the Opposition
Trevecca: One of the G-MAC's best volleyball programs in the conference's early years and the 2015 tournament champion, the Trojans fell on hard times at the same time that Hillsdale joined the league in 2017, missing the G-MAC tournament in back-to-back seasons in 2017 and 2018.
But the Trojans made big gains in 2019 with a 16-17 record, making their first G-MAC tournament appearance since 2016 in the process. Trevecca, the sixth seed in the 2019 tourney, fell in the quarterfinals to Walsh in a tight five-set match, but the Trojans return six of their top seven players from a lineup of mostly sophomores and freshmen and look ready to take another step forward in the spring of 2021.
In junior middle blocker Austyn Baldwin, the Trojans have one of the top players in the G-MAC to build around, and sophomore Ellie Buffler, the 2019 G-MAC Freshman of the Year, compliments her nicely up front.
The Trojans built their 2019 success on strong defensive play, holding opponents to the third worst hitting percentage and the second fewest kills per setof any team in the G-MAC. With much of its lineup back, Trevecca will rely on a similar formula in 2021, and look to continue to grow offensively.
Trevecca is coached by Emily Moore, who took over in 2019 and helped lead an immediate turnaround in the program's fortunes. Prior to taking the head job, Moore served as associate head coach for the Trojans, and was also an extremely successful high school coach in the state of Tennessee.
Kentucky Wesleyan: Always a tough opponent in the G-MAC, the Panthers had one of their best seasons in recent years in 2019, posting a 16-12 mark that was the program's best record since it shared the regular-season conference title in 2013, hosting a G-MAC Tournament game, and reaching the semifinals of that tournament.
KWC fell to eventual champion Hillsdale in three sets in that semifinal, and do have some big holes to fill this offseason with the graduation of four of its top five players in sets played.
The cupboard is far from bare, however, for the Panthers, who return talented middle hitter Danielle Brouillette, an All-G-MAC player in 2019, as well as two outside hitters in Nicole Martin and Nilah Roy that give the Panthers a fearsome front row.
Much like Trevecca, KWC relied heavily on a stingy defense in 2019, holding opponents to the second worst hitting percentage and the fewest kills per set of any team in the G-MAC. Maintaining that defensive edge despite the graduation of several key back-row players will be critical for the Panthers in 2021. KWC also will need to find a capable replacement for top setter Lydia Jackson.
The Panthers are coached by Eric Hagan, who is in his seven season with the program. During his tenure at Kentucky Wesleyan, the Panthers have made five of the last six G-MAC tournaments.
Scouting the Chargers
In September of 2017, new G-MAC member Hillsdale College lost their first two conference matches, to Findlay and Cedarville.
The Chargers haven't lost in G-MAC play since, reeling off 55 straight match wins and capturing three straight conference regular season and tournament titles in an impressive display of dominance.
In 2019, Hillsdale ran the table for the second consecutive season, going a perfect 12-0 in conference play and dropping just five sets to conference foes on the way to a 28-4 record. The Chargers haven't gone to five sets in a conference match since that loss to Findlay on Sept. 12, 2017.
Hillsdale might just be getting started, too, as the spring 2021 edition looks like the best team the Chargers have fielded in their four seasons of G-MAC membership.
Seven of the top nine players in terms of sets played return for Hillsdale from a 2019 team that made just the program's third-ever Midwest Regional final appearance. Leading the way is senior middle hitter Allyssa Van Wienen, a consensus All-American in 2019 who was named the G-MAC's Female Athlete of the Year and volleyball Player of the Year after a dominant performance.
Along with Van Wienen, Hillsdale also returns setter Lindsey Mertz, a four-year starter and three-time first-team All-G-MAC player who is on track to finish her career as the program's all-time assists leader. The Chargers also have weapons all across the front row to compliment Van Wienen, including juniors Karoline Shelton and Maggie DePorre, both All-G-MAC players in 2019.
To this group the Chargers also add a healthy Maddie Clark. The junior outside hitter started the first five matches in 2019 and was playing at an All-G-MAC level herself before suffering a season-ending knee injury. Her return makes the Chargers even more dangerous up front.
The biggest question mark facing Hillsdale is replacing graduated libero Taylor Wiese, a 2019 All-American who holds multiple program records for digs. Even there, the Chargers have multiple options, including talented defensive specialists Madie Schider and Audrey Riley, and Wiese's younger sister Alli, who joined the team as a freshman in the fall and headlines a strong four-player class that should contribute immediately.
Coaching the Chargers for the 25th 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 seven conference regular season titles, six conference tournament titles, made 12 NCAA Division II tournament appearances, won the Midwest Regional title in 2011, and reached the NCAA DII Final Four in that same year.
Other Notes
- Hillsdale has had great success against Trevecca Nazarene and Kentucky Wesleyan since joining the G-MAC in 2017, going a combined 11-0 against the two programs without losing a set against either. The Chargers' most recent victory against Trevecca came on Nov. 1, 2019, and their most recent victory over the Panthers came in the G-MAC Tournament Semifinal on Nov. 22.
- Junior Allyssa Van Wienen enters the 2021 season as a national player of the year contender after an impressive 2019 campaign that saw her become the Chargers' 11th NCAA DII All-American in program history and win one of the G-MAC's highest honors, the Female Athlete of the Year. Van Wienen has an opportunity to become just the fourth repeat All-American in program history. Her efficiency sets her apart; among Division II leaders in both hitting percentage (2nd, .427) and points per set (fourth, 4.92), Van Wienen was the only player in the country to finish in the top 15 in both categories.
- Senior setter Lindsey Mertz has flown under the radar when it comes to national recognition, but she's quietly assembling one of the most statistically productive careers for a setter in Hillsdale history. Mertz set a new single-season school record for the 25-point rally scoring era in assists in 2019, with 1,264, breaking the mark set by former All-American Apryl Schmucker in 2011. She's also rapidly approaching the career assists mark set by Stephanie Booms from 2005-08 – at 3,671 for her career, Mertz is 1,014 assists shy of Booms' record, a mark she's exceeded in every one of her three seasons to date.
- Several Charger players are contenders for a breakout individual season in 2021, but keep an eye on sophomore middle hitter Megan Kolp. She finished fourth in the G-MAC in hitting percentage (.291) and sixth in blocks per set (0.82) as a freshman in a part time role, and those numbers bode well for her future as her playing time increases.
- While Hillsdale will miss graduated libero Taylor Wiese, a 2019 All-American on the court, she hasn't gone far. Wiese has joined the Charger coaching staff as Gravel's lead assistant this season, and will look to pass her knowledge along to the current Charger squad. That includes Taylor's younger sister, Alli, a freshman who joined the squad this past fall and who will look to continue the Wiese family tradition of excellent defensive play at Hillsdale.