Celebrating the past and present with an eye on the future, the 18th-ranked Hillsdale College volleyball team made quick work of visiting Ursuline in both teams' regular season finale on Saturday.
It was Senior Day for Hillsdale, as the Chargers honored a special five-player senior class that's recorded 126 victories to 22 losses and brought home several individual and team accolades over the past five seasons.
That group played a big part in a 25-20, 25-12, 25-15 sweep of the visiting Arrows, a victory that gave the Chargers their 25th win of the season and clinched a fourth-straight undefeated run through regular season G-MAC play.
Senior Maddie Clark tied her career best in kills in a three-set match with 14 to lead the Chargers and also chipped in seven digs, while fellow senior Allyssa Van Wienen added 12 kills and four total blocks in the contest.
Playing at libero, senior Madie Schider led the Charger defense with 13 digs and a service ace, and senior Maggie DePorre chipped in five kills, four digs and three total blocks.
Last but not least, senior setter Lindsey Mertz had a huge night, finishing with 39 kills and eight digs despite only playing part of the third set.
Along with those stellar seniors, junior outside hitter Karoline Shelton added eight kills and 11 digs for the Chargers, and freshman Maizie Brown chipped in five kills and three blocks.
The Chargers hit .342 as a team and overpowered Ursuline at the net, scoring 21 of their 25 points in the first set off of kills.
Now 25-4 overall, Hillsdale turns its focus to postseason play. The Chargers are the top seed and earned a first-round bye in the G-MAC Tournament. They'll play host to the semifinal and final rounds on Friday and Saturday, with semifinal matchups on Friday at 5 and 7:30 p.m. with the teams to be determined.
The Chargers are seeking their fifth-straight G-MAC Tournament title and momentum heading into the NCAA Tournament three weeks from now, where a G-MAC title would guarantee the Chargers a likely top-three seed. Hillsdale was a regional finalist in 2019 and is hoping for another deep run in 2021.
Photo by Anthony Lupi '22
