Their opponent didn't make it easy on Friday night, but the top-ranked Hillsdale College volleyball team once again swept their way to a 54th straight regular-season victory over a Great Midwest Athletic Conference foe.
The Chargers fought off a scrappy Ohio Dominican team that fought for every point in a 25-15, 25-22, 25-17 victory, with both teams playing extended rallies for several points.
The first set opened with back-and-forth play, with both Hillsdale and ODU struggling to seize the momentum. The Chargers had just an 11-10 lead when Hillsdale finally took control of the set, reeling off five straight points thanks to three straight kills from junior Maggie DePorre to take a 16-10 lead the Chargers wouldn't relinquish.
The Panthers came back with an even more determined effort in the second set, jumping out to an 8-3 lead and extending it to a 16-9 advantage midway through the set. Hillsdale clawed its way back into the set, reeling off four straight points that included two kills from junior Karoline Shelton to cut the deficit to 18-17.
Trailing 22-19, the Chargers scored the last six points to pull off a comeback victory, with a solo block by Shelton and a double block by sophomore Madeline Zenas and senior Allyssa Van Wienen providing the final two points to clinch the set for Hillsdale.
Tied 6-6 in the third set, the Chargers reeled off six straight points to take a 12-6 lead, with two blocks by Shelton and freshman Maizie Brown during that stretch helping give the Chargers the momentum to pull away and clinch the match.
Facing a tenacious defensive squad, Hillsdale simply overpowered Ohio Dominican at the net, finishing with 43 kills on a .219 hitting percentage to ODU's 32 kills on a .105 hitting percentage. As it has all season long, the Chargers' offensive balance made them extremely hard to control up front. Shelton led the Chargers with 10 kills on a .258 hitting percentage, but DePorre and Van Wienen were both close behind with nine kills as well.
Zenas, at setter, played an important role, dishing out a career-best 29 assists for a three-set match and also chipping in seven kills as her height and the threat of the offensive weapons around her created several opportunities for tip kills throughout the match.
Megan Kolp chipped in four kills for the Chargers, and Brown added three kills, three solo blocks and two block assists for the Chargers in a big night for the freshman at the net.
Defensively, freshman Alli Wiese led Hillsdale with 16 digs, Shelton chipped in 14, and senior Madie Schider added 10. The Chargers finished with seven service aces in the match, with sophomore Audrey Riley and Van Wienen each contributing two in the victory.
Hillsdale (10-0, 8-0 G-MAC) is back in action tomorrow in an important match against Gannon at 7 p.m. Though the Knights dropped out of the AVCA rankings this week, they're undefeated on the season, and with several key pieces back from an Elite Eight team in 2019, they just might be the best team on Hillsdale's schedule this spring regardless of the rankings. Although there are no conference stakes and no NCAA Tournament to build a resume for, both teams will be looking to make a statement with a win on Saturday.
Photo by Anthony Lupi