2010 GLIAC/GLVC Crossover Volleyball Tournament Homepage

Hillsdale 3, Northern Kentucky 2

Hillsdale 3, Lewis 2

Hillsdale 3, Southern Indiana 0


October 16, 2010 - For the second time in three years, the Hillsdale College volleyball team went 3-0 at the GLIAC/GLVC Challenge. And although Saturday's win over Northern Kentucky didn't come easily, it was a win of deep satisfaction for the team's coaches and players.

The Chargers jumped out to a 2-0 lead on the Norse, only to lose sets three and four before putting NKU away, 3-2 at the final match of the crossover for both teams.

Hillsdale, ranked 12th in the country, has now won 17 in a row and is 18-1 overall. The team resumes GLIAC play by hosting South Division rival Findlay at 7 p.m. Wednesday.

Hillsdale blasted NKU 25-13 in each of the first two sets on Saturday, only to lose two tight sets 25-23 and 25-22. The Chargers pulled away for the win in the fifth set, 15-7.

Senior Clara Leutheuser had another outstanding match for Hillsdale, getting 16 kills with a .583 hitting percentage. She also had one service ace, three digs and a solo block.

Junior Ashlee Crowder led the team with 17 kills, and hit an impressive .394. Fellow outside hitter Amanda Bigney was on target with 11 kills and a .409 hitting percentage.

Junior Apryl Schmucker handed out 37 assists, and was within one kill of her first career triple double. She had nine kills and 10 digs, along with two block assists. Senior Sydney Dow led the team with 16 digs.


Hillsdale 3, Lewis 2
The two highest nationally ranked teams at the country's largest volleyball tournament squared off in a classic confrontation Friday night, and Hillsdale College emerged victorious.

Rallying from numerous deficits in the entire match, the 12th-ranked Chargers defeated #11 Lewis University 3-2 at the GLIAC/GLVC Crossover Tournament, in Aurora, Illinois.

Friday's match was the first five-set match the Chargers have played this season, and it ranks as the most dramatic of this season. Lewis held leads late in each of the first four sets, but Hillsdale's team balance and mental toughness won the day, as the Chargers were able to overcome a season-high in errors, a season-low in team hitting percentage, and a very talented opponent to register its biggest win of this season, so far.

The teams split the first two sets, with Lewis winning the first 25-21 and Hillsdale the second, 25-23. The Chargers went on a 12-5 run to end that second set.

The Flyers (16-3) were in total control through the third set, 25-18, and seemed on the verge of closing out the match when they led 22-18 in the fourth set. But Hillsdale stormed back to go on an 8-2 run to close out the set, thanks to two set-ending kills by Lauren Grover.

With energy and momentum, the Chargers seized control of the fifth set, jumping out to a 5-2 lead in the fifth set. Getting an early lead in the fifth set of any match is critical, because the first team to 15 points wins. While the Chargers never ran away from the Flyers in that set, they did maintain a lead throughout, and with a kill by freshman Caitlin Kopmeyer, won the set 15-11.

Leutheuser (pictured below) tied her career-high with 20 kills in the match. Schmucker (pictured above) set a new career-high with 53 assists, to go along with five kills, 10 digs and two total blocks.

Remarkably, Hillsdale did not have a service ace in the entire match, and had 10 service errors and 20 reception errors. But the team made up for this 20-0 scoring deficit by registering 14 more kills and 20 more digs than Lewis in the match. This translates to the Chargers doing an excellent job of keeping balls in play, and winning key points on long rallies.

Crowder had 14 kills, while Kopmeyer had her first career double-double, with 10 kills and a career-high 12 digs. Senior Dow had 21 digs, followed by a career-high tying 15 digs from junior Morgan Podkul, and 14 digs from Brogan Wells.


Hillsdale 3, Southern Indiana 0
In Friday's first match of the 2010 GLIAC/GLVC Crossover Tournament, the Hillsdale College volleyball team increased its current winning streak to 15, with a 3-0 sweep of the University of Southern Indiana.

The Chargers topped the Screaming Eagles by scores of 25-23, 25-16 and 25-20.

USI jumped out to a 6-1 lead in the opening set before the Chargers came back. Hillsdale made it a tie score at 12-12, and maintained a slim lead through the rest of the set.

Hillsdale, ranked 12th in the nation, controlled all of set two, winning 25-16. USI again got off to a good start in the third set, leading 17-13 at one point. But after junior Amanda Geelhoed reentered the match, the Chargers finished the set on a match-ending 12-3 run. Geelhoed had two kills, two assists and two blocks during the rally.

Crowder led Hillsdale with 15 kills, and hit .385 for the match. Bigney had a strong game, with nine kills and a .333 attack percentage. Schmucker had five kills, nine digs, three block assists and 32 assists, and sophomore Lauren Grover led one of the nation's top blocking teams with one solo block and five block assists.