Schedule
Walsh (14-10, 9-7 G-MAC) at Hillsdale (22-6, 14-2 G-MAC) | 7 p.m. Friday, Nov. 4 | Dawn Tibbetts Potter Arena| Hillsdale, MI
Malone (11-17, 7-9 G-MAC) at Hillsdale (22-6, 14-2 G-MAC) | 5 p.m. Saturday, Nov. 5 | Dawn Tibbetts Potter Arena| Hillsdale, MI
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Additional Info
Hillsdale Roster | Malone Roster | Walsh Roster | 2022 Hillsdale Stats | 2022 Malone Stats | 2022 Walsh Stats
Players to Watch
Hillsdale: #7 Karoline Shelton, Sr., OH, Shawnee, KS/Mission South (5th G-MAC in K/S, 5th in P/S, 10th in D/S); #4 Alli Wiese, So., L/DS, Mattawan, MI/Mattawan (3rd G-MAC in D/S, 4th in SA/S); #8 Maizie Brown, So., MH, Portage, MI/Central (1st G-MAC in B/S); #13 Marilyn Popplewell, So., OH, Mason, OH/Mason (8th G-MAC in K/S, 8th in P/S); #11 Lauren Passaglia, So., S, Cary, IL/Cary Grove (5th G-MAC in A/S)
Walsh: #8 Olivia Kearns, So., S, Lexington, Ohio/Lexington (7th G-MAC in A/S); #2 Olivia Maczuzak, Sr., OH, Painesville, OH/Riverside (1st team in K/S); #12 Keanna Avery, Sr., OH, Dennison, OH/Claymont, Cleveland St. (12th G-MAC in SA/S, 2nd Team in K/S); #7 Arora Levengood, So., DS/L, Bolivar, OH/Tuscarawas (1st Team in D/S)
Malone: #3 Macy McCauley, So., OH, North Canton, OH/Hoover (2nd G-MAC in D/S); #8 Molly Bullion, Jr., S, Bellevue, OH/Bellevue (7th G-MAC in SA/S, 1st Team in A/S); #11 Kristen Hankins, Sr., MH, Farmington Hills, MI/Harrison (5th G-MAC in B/S); #9 CC Gurney, Sr., OH, Shelby, OH/Shelby (1st Team in K/S)
Scouting the Opposition
Walsh: The Cavaliers sit in third in the G-MAC North Division and above .500, but face a tough final week as Walsh looks to secure one of the four spots still up for grabs in the G-MAC Tournament
Walsh has a dangerous and balanced offense that's been enhanced by the addition of Cleveland State transfer Keanna Avery, who adds potent hitting ability to an already solid front row that includes returning All-G-MAC outside hitter Olivia Maczuzak and middle hitter Grace Lindquist, as well as junior Sydney Dixon. All four players as well as freshman Sammie DiBease are all averaging over 2 kills a set for one of the most balanced attacks by any team in the conference.
Experienced setter Olivia Kearns directs the attack and makes Walsh a tough out for any G-MAC opponent. The Cavaliers likely need just one victory to lock up their place in the G-MAC Tournament, but will have a hard time with the North Division leaders on tap. A Saturday match with fellow playoff contender Northwood may determine the fate of both teams.
Legrair comes to Walsh with eight years of coaching experience at the club, high school and collegiate levels, most recently with the Kent State men's volleyball club team.
Malone: The Pioneers have a chance to reach the G-MAC Tournament after missing out last year, but will likely need at least two wins in the final week against a tough slate. That means Malone could be desperate by the time they reach the Chargers on Saturday.
Malone boasts a solid defense at the net, headed by middle hitters Ri'gyn Humes and Kristen Hankins, and has a strong backrow led by libero Macy McCauley, who is second in the G-MAC in digs per set and the Pioneers' breakout star this season.
To take the next step, however, the Pioneers have to get more offense. Malone is balanced, led by CC Gurney and returning All-G-MAC player Anna Mallette, but need more than 11.06 kills per set to pull needed upsets in the final week.
Gonzalez was a long-time assistant at Malone dating back to the school's NAIA days in 1999, and started coaching after playing volleyball professionally overseas.
Scouting the Chargers
Hillsdale locked up a share of a sixth straight conference crown last weekend, sweeping Findlay to guarantee a piece of the North Division title. A win against Walsh on Friday would secure the outright crown, and allow Hillsdale to turn its focus to the G-MAC Tournament and securing its seventh NCAA Tournament bid in eight seasons.
In 2022, the Chargers have had to overcome significant graduation losses from its 2021 NCAA DII Elite Eight squad, 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 is honoring six graduating seniors this weekend – Megan Kolp, Linnea Larson, Audrey Riley, Karoline Shelton, Emily Susitko and Madeline Zenas – who have been a part of four consecutive 20 or more win seasons, four straight G-MAC Division titles, three outright G-MAC titles, three NCAA Tournament appearances, two NCAA Midwest Regional Final appearances, and a NCAA DII Elite Eight berth, as well as posting a 100-18 record over the last four seasons, and a 53-2 mark in G-MAC regular season play. One of the seniors, Karoline Shelton, is a fifth-year player and was also a part of Hillsdale's 25-7 season, G-MAC title and NCAA Tournament berth that year as well.
- The Chargers are looking to keep two impressive streaks going against this weekend's opponents. Hillsdale is a combined 26-0 against Malone and Walsh since playing both teams for the first time in 2012, and have been taken to five sets by the Pioneers and Cavaliers just one time each – both in 2016.
- Hillsdale reached the 20-win mark for the sixth consecutive season two weekends ago, and added two more wins last weekend. This stretch of 20-win seasons is the longest in program history – prior to this stretch, Hillsdale had won 20 or more games in just 10 seasons in the entire NCAA DII era dating back to 1990.
- The Chargers came in at seventh in the Midwest Region in the initial regional rankings this weekend, putting them in the NCAA Tournament field, but as one of the teams on the bubble. Hillsdale will be looking for a strong finish to lock up their spot and secure a sixth-straight NCAA Tournament berth this November.
- Sophomore libero Alli Wiese has been named the G-MAC North Division Defensive Player of the Week three times this season. Wiese, who is second in the G-MAC in digs per set and fourth in service aces per set, needs just 64 digs to break her own single-season record for digs of 624 set last season, and 10 aces to break Apryl Schmucker's single-season ace record of 57 set in 2011, over this weekend and the G-MAC Tournament. The sophomore has 1,494 digs for her career, good for sixth all-time at Hillsdale, and is on pace to break Hillsdale's career digs record of 2,251 held by her older sister, Taylor.
- 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 1,409 kills and 1,551 digs through this past weekend, Shelton is now in the top five all-time at Hillsdale in both stats, and could move as high as third in kills before her career ends.
- The Chargers are elite defensively once again this year as Hillsdale leads the G-MAC and is 11th in the nation at the NCAA DII level in digs per set at 18.32. Wiese, mentioned above, plays a leading role with 5.23 digs per set, but Hillsdale is also getting important contributions from defensive specialists Amy Buffini (2.29 D/S) and Audrey Riley (2.05), as well as impressive support from outside hitter Karoline Shelton (3.53) and setter Lauren Passaglia (2.40).
- Hillsdale currently leads the G-MAC in blocks per set with 2.34 in 2022 – a testament to the Chargers' strength up front. Leading the way is sophomore Maizie Brown, who has 101 total blocks this season, and whose 1.10 blocks per set leads the G-MAC. Sydney Sahr (0.78) and Megan Kolp (0.84) also rate highly among G-MAC players, as does Linnea Larson, who has 1.16 blocks per set, though in not enough sets to qualify for the conference standings.
- 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.