Schedule
Davenport (7-1, 0-0 GLIAC) at #20 Hillsdale (6-2, 0-0 G-MAC) | 7 p.m. Tuesday, Sept. 6 | Dawn Tibbetts Potter Arena | Hillsdale, MI
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Additional Info
Hillsdale Roster | Ferris St. Roster | 2022 Hillsdale Stats | 2022 Ferris St. Stats
Players to Watch
Hillsdale: #7 Karoline Shelton, Sr., OH, Shawnee, KS/Mission South (3rd G-MAC in K/S, 6th in P/S, 10th in D/S) #4 Alli Wiese, So., L/DS, Mattawan, MI/Mattawan (4th G-MAC in D/S); #8 Maizie Brown, So., MH, Portage, MI/Central (1st G-MAC in B/S); #13 Marilyn Popplewell, So., OH, Mason, OH/Mason (9th G-MAC in K/S, 12th in P/S)
Davenport: #4 Hailey Krieger, Sr., OH, South Haven, MI/South Haven (3rd GLIAC in K/S); #5 Lexie Beeke, Jr., S, Richland, MI/Gull Lake/Youngstown State (8th GLIAC in A/S); #7 Lindsay Taylor, Sr., Rockford, MI/Rockford/Miami (OH) (4th GLIAC in K/S, 1st in SA/S); #8 Kenzy Corstange, Sr., L, Richland, MI/Gull Lake (2nd GLIAC in D/S)
Scouting the Opposition
Fresh off a strong showing against a tough field at its own home invitational over the weekend, the Hillsdale College volleyball team gets one more difficult test on Tuesday before heading into conference play.
Davenport missed the NCAA Tournament last season but took the Chargers to five sets in 2021 and return almost all the key pieces from that squad this season. They've parlayed that experience into an impressive 7-1 start that includes wins over 2021 NCAA Tournament teams Flagler and Edinboro.
The Panthers have one of the region's top outside hitters in Hailey Krieger, an AVCA honorable mention All-American in 2021, as well as one of the top returning liberos in All-GLIAC second team Kenzy Corstange among 10 returning players.
Added to the roster are two big time DI transfers that are already making an impact. Miami (Ohio) transfer Lindsay Taylor has given Davenport an equally potent hitter opposite of Krieger, and Youngstown St. transfer Lexie Beeke has stepped in as part of the setter rotation as well.
The Panthers look like a contender in the GLIAC and a potential NCAA Tourney team so far, which makes them a dangerous opponent, but also a potential big resume booster for the Chargers if Hillsdale can get the victory on Tuesday.
Scouting the Chargers
Fresh off one of the best seasons in program history, including the program's second-ever NCAA DII Midwest Regional championship and Elite Eight appearance, Hillsdale looks to keep a run of recent success going in 2022.
The Chargers will have to overcome significant graduation losses to do so, as Hillsdale bid farewell last spring to a talented five-player senior class that included two All-Americans, two more All-G-MAC players and a player who finished in the top 10 all time in career digs at Hillsdale.
Despite the losses, however, Hillsdale is still well-stocked with talent, as well as meaningful experience at multiple positions. A third 2021 All-American, senior outside hitter Karoline Shelton, returns for the final season of a stellar five-year career, and is joined by two-time All-G-MAC libero Alli Wiese, who set the Hillsdale single-season record for digs last year, as well as two-time All-G-MAC middle hitter Maizie Brown.
The Chargers have plenty of options in the front row, led by sophomore outside hitter Marilyn Popplewell, who was the breakout star of Hillsdale's NCAA Tournament run as a freshman after barely playing in the first half of the season, as well as senior middle hitter Megan Kolp, who's played an important role on multiple Charger squads.
In the back row, Hillsdale can call on rock-solid veteran Audrey Riley, who's been part of the rotation since arriving as a freshman, and athletic sophomore Amy Buffini, who impressed with her defensive skills in limited playing time last year and who brings added flexibility to the lineup with her ability to play in the front row as well.
The biggest question mark for Hillsdale is at setter, where the Chargers will have to replace five-year starter Lindsey Mertz, the program's assists record-holder. Luckily, Hillsdale has a promising new starter in sophomore Lauren Passaglia who beat out several other quality options for the spot and has been solid so far.
Coaching the Chargers for the 27th 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 nine conference regular season titles, eight conference tournament titles, made 13 NCAA Division II tournament appearances, won the Midwest Regional title in 2011 and 2021, and reached the NCAA DII Final Four in 2011 while making the Elite Eight round in 2021.
Other Notes
- Hillsdale was ranked 20th in this week's AVCA DII Top 25, after entering the season ranked 16th in the nation. Hillsdale has now made the AVCA DII Top 25 for 44 consecutive polls, continuing to extend a program record. The Chargers also were the top vote-getter in the 2022 G-MAC Preseason Coaches poll, and named the favorite to win the North Division.
- Hillsdale went 3-1 last weekend at their own home invitational, finishing with the top record among competing teams after wins over 17th-ranked Gannon, Ferris State and Missouri S&T. The Chargers' Marilyn Popplewell was named tournament MVP, Alli Wiese received the Outstanding Libero award, and Lauren Passaglia also made the All-Tournament team.
- The Chargers enter the 2022 season looking to extend its dominance of the G-MAC for another campaign. Hillsdale has won five consecutive regular season titles and five G-MAC tournament titles in a row since joining the conference in 2017, and are currently on a 71-match winning streak in conference games (85 including conference tournament matches). Hillsdale's last loss in G-MAC play came in a four-set defeat at the hands of Cedarville on Sept. 15, 2017, during the program's first week as a G-MAC member.
- Senior outside hitter Karoline Shelton is building a resume as one of the most accomplished all-around players in program history. The 2021 All-American is one of just two players in program history, along with Cassandra Cole (1996-99), to surpass both 1,000 kills and 1,000 digs for her career. At 1,191 kills and 1,327 digs through this past weekend, an injury-free campaign should see Shelton move into the top five all-time at Hillsdale in both stats.
- Sophomore libero Alli Wiese reached an important career milestone early, becoming the 12th Charger to surpass 1,000 digs on opening weekend. She now sits at 1,099 digs for her career, and was named the Outstanding Libero of the Hillsdale Invite this past weekend. Wiese, who set a program record for single-season digs with 624 last fall and is averaging 5.36 digs per set for her career, has a great shot at chasing down the program's career digs record of 2,251 held by her older sister, Taylor, if she can stay healthy the next three seasons.
- Hillsdale currently leads the G-MAC in blocks per set with 2.71 through two weekends, and is 11th nationally in the statistic – a testament to the Chargers' strength up front. Leading the way is sophomore Maizie Brown, who had 26 total blocks at the Rockhurst Invite last weekend, and whose 1.72 blocks per set rank third in the entire nation at the NCAA DII level. Brown is a two-time All-G-MAC player who's stepping into a bigger role in her third season with the Chargers, and will be one to watch throughout the season.
- Family ties play an interesting role for the Hillsdale College volleyball team this year, with several players following in the footsteps of family members who played Charger athletics. Three of Hillsdale's five incoming freshmen have older siblings who are or were Chargers – libero Chloe Pierce's older sister, Sophia, just wrapped up her career as a women's basketball player at Hillsdale, front row player Adi Sysum is the younger sister of women's basketball player Arianna Sysum, and setter Josie TeSlaa is the younger sister of Charger football player Isaac TeSlaa. They join Alli Wiese, whose older sister, Taylor, also was a libero for the Chargers and is currently on the coaching staff.
- Familiar faces are all over head coach Chris Gravel's coaching staff. As mentioned above, assistant Taylor Wiese was an All-American libero for the Chargers from 2016-19. She's joined this year as an assistant by Allyssa Van Wienen, who just wrapped up her Charger career last fall and finished as a two-time All-American.
Photo by McKenna Eichholz