It's easy to forget that the Hillsdale College volleyball team actually lost its first two matches in Great Midwest Athletic Conference play in 2017.
Four years and fifty-five straight match victories later, including a 25-5, 25-22, 25-23 sweep of Ohio Valley to wrap up the regular season on Saturday, those losses feel like ancient history.
The Chargers, ranked fifth in the nation in the most recent AVCA Division II poll, rolled past the Fighting Scots to secure a third-straight undefeated season in the G-MAC and lock up the outright conference championship once again.
Redshirt freshman Emily Susitko led an extremely balanced Charger attack with a career-high eight kills and two block assists to help Hillsdale take the victory, Karoline Shelton chipped in six kills, 13 digs and a service ace, and Maggie DePorre added six kills as well.
Another redshirt freshman, Linnea Larson, also got her chance to shine defensively for the Chargers, leading the team with two solo blocks and two block assists as well as four kills in the contest.
Libero Alli Wiese led the Chargers defensively with 21 digs, Madie Schider chipped in eight digs, and Audrey Riley added three service aces as well.
Setter Madeline Zenas dished out 28 assists and set up kills for eight different Chargers in the match.
Hillsdale rolled past Ohio Valley in Set 1, but had to battle back from a 15-9 deficit in set two behind strong play from Shelton and Kolp.
The third set was similarly close, as the Scots used a 4-0 run to cut Hillsdale's lead to 23-21 late in the set. However, kills by Susitko and Maizie Brown helped end the threat and seal the match.
At 13-1 overall and 11-0 in G-MAC play, the Chargers enter the G-MAC Tournament next week as the top seed for the fourth consecutive year. Hillsdale will host eighth-seeded Ursuline in a quarterfinal matchup at 7 p.m. on Tuesday looking to advance to the semifinal round and guarantee the rest of the tournament is played on the Chargers' home floor.
Photo by Anthony Lupi