The road wasn't easy for the Hillsdale College volleyball team as it looked to keep lengthy G-MAC title and NCAA Tourney qualification streaks alive in the 2023 season.
But the Chargers still found a way to be right where they seem to always be in the end -- atop the conference and in the NCAA Tournament field.
The season got off to a promising start, with a 6-2 record in non-conference play, with one of those losses coming in a competitive match with the then-second ranked team in the nation, Concordia-St. Paul. Hillsdale built off that start with seven straight wins in G-MAC play, positioning the Chargers as a contender for a seventh-straight G-MAC Division title.
But then, adversity hit for Hillsdale, as the G-MAC, rapidly growing and improving year-to-year as a volleyball conference, bit back. Hillsdale took two hard-fought five set losses that came down to the final points against other title contenders in October, leaving the Chargers two games out of first place with just two weeks left in the regular season.
Hillsdale refused to be deterred, closing with a 4-1 record in the final five matches, including a critical sweep of previously unbeaten Walsh at home that opened the door for the Chargers to make a late push. Those victories proved to be just enough to catch Walsh on the final two days of the season, tying the Cavaliers for not only the North Division crown but also the outright G-MAC Championship and securing the top seed in the G-MAC Tourney.
Alhough Hillsdale entered that tournament as the top seed and host, the Chargers' path to the crown was far from an easy one. In the semifinal round, the Chargers met a tough Findlay squad that had beaten Hillsdale not once, but twice in five-set heartbreakers in the regular season. Motivated by a shot at revenge, the Chargers played their best match of the season to overcome a determined effort by the Oilers, sweeping Findlay in a thrilling match to advance. The next day, with a seventh-straight G-MAC title on the line, Hillsdale showed its resilience, fending off an upset bid from an inspired Ohio Dominican team in the final with a clutch fifth-set performance to bring home the crown and an automatic bid to the program's sixth-straight NCAA Tournament.
In the NCAA Tournament, the Chargers pushed GLIAC Champion and second-seeded Ferris State to the brink, taking the heavily-favored Bulldogs to five sets in an impressive performance before falling to the eventual regional finalist in a tight 15-12 final set.
For the season, Hillsdale finished the year 27-7, marking the sixth time in seven seasons where Hillsdale exceeded 25 or more wins, with the seventh the abbreviated spring 2021 campaign during the Covid-19 pandemic where Hillsdale still finished 20-3 overall. That streak, along with Hillsdale's seven straight G-MAC Division titles, seven straight G-MAC Tourney titles, and six straight NCAA Tourney appearances, all are unprecedented not only in the legendary 28-year tenure of head coach Chris Gravel, but in the entire program's 40-plus year history.
The 2023 season also was a notable one for individual records and milestones. Gravel became just the 11th active head coach at the NCAA DII level to reach 600 wins for his career with a victory over Ohio Dominican on Oct. 21, and is now at 609 for his career.
Senior libero Alli Wiese also capped a storied career at Hillsdale by breaking two records -- surpassing the Chargers' career digs mark set by her older sister, Taylor, in 2019 with 2,268 for her career, and also breaking a single-season service aces mark set by All-American Apryl Schmucker in 2011 with 65 aces in 2023. Wiese made more history by becoming the first libero to earn G-MAC Player of the Year honors in the 11-year history of the conference, and also by earning AVCA honorable-mention All-American honors for the second-straight season, making her one of just six players in program history to earn back-to-back All-American honors.
Junior outside hitter Marilyn Popplewell also joined Wiese in being named to the AVCA All-American honorable mention list in 2023, as well as first-team All-G-MAC honors. Popplewell had a record-setting night of her own in September, breaking the program's record for aces in a match with eight in a four-set victory over Wayne State.
Junior middle hitter Maizie Brown also earned first-team All-G-MAC honors and was the MVP of the G-MAC Tournament for the Chargers. Her 44 solo blocks in the 2023 season broke a program record set by All-American Lauren Grover in 2012.
Lauren Passaglia, a junior setter, surpassed 1,000 assists for the second-straight season and also made the All-G-MAC second team, her second straight season receiving an All-Conference honor.
Although the Chargers will have big holes to fill in their lineup with the departure of Wiese and fifth-year senior contributors Audrey Riley and Megan Kolp, the future remains bright for the Chargers, as Popplewell, Brown, Passaglia and every other player who saw the court for Hillsdale in 2023 are slated to return for the 2024 season, and will be joined by a strong five-player freshman class. More to the point, Hillsdale has shown that it's reached the level of program that reloads, not rebuilds, even when gifted and elite players graduate and move on. So it is with the Chargers, whose goals -- G-MAC titles and deep NCAA Tournament runs -- will be the same in 2024 as they were in 2023.
Photo by Patrick Clark