The Hillsdale College volleyball team fought hard in a critical Saturday road contest at Ashland, but ultimately couldn't overcome the Eagles' offensive firepower in a 20-25, 14-25, 21-25 defeat.
In a battle where first place in the G-MAC standings was on the line, the Chargers got a dream start, jumping out to an 11-3 lead in the first set behind a long service run from Maizie Brown that included kills by senior Karoline Shelton and sophomore Lauren Passaglia.
But Ashland found its footing and came roaring back, tying the set at 17-all and eventually pulling ahead with a 7-1 run to seize control and go up 1-0 in the match.
From there, the Chargers struggled to regain momentum against a potent Ashland attack. The Eagles hit .296 for the match and more than doubled up the Chargers in total kills, 54-26, including 20 kills by the Eagles in the second set. The Charger defense did what it could to keep Hillsdale in the match, finishing with 59 digs in three sets, but it wasn't enough to cool off Ashland's attack at the net.
Shelton finished with a double-double to lead Hillsdale offensively, contributing 10 kills and 11 digs, and senior Megan Kolp and sophomore Marilyn Popplewell each chipped in five kills as well.
Libero Alli Wiese led the Chargers with 17 digs, senior Audrey Riley chipped in 10 and Brown added seven digs and five block assists as well.
Setter Lauren Passaglia assisted on 23 of Hillsdale's 26 kills, and added four digs and two block assists as well.
Hillsdale falls to 16-4 overall and 8-2 in the G-MAC with the loss. The victory gives Ashland pole position to host the season-ending G-MAC Tournament, as they now are up by at least a game on all other contenders, and control every tiebreaker. The Chargers can still claim the G-MAC North Division crown by winning out in conference play.
Hillsdale will next take part in the Midwest Regional Crossover next weekend in Hammond, Indiana, with two matches on Friday and one on Saturday against GLIAC and GLVC foes. Matchups for that event will be announced on Monday.
Photo by Isabella Sheehan