Hillsdale 3, Wisconsin-Parkside 0

Hillsdale 3, Indianapolis 0

Hillsdale 3, Southern Indiana 0

Hillsdale 3, Southern Indiana 0
October 15, 2011 – The Hillsdale College volleyball team completed the cleanest of sweeps at the 2011 Mizuno GLIAC/GLCV Corssover Volleyball Tournament Saturday afternoon.

The 8th-ranked Chargers swept the University of Southern Indiana 3-0 at the Great Lakes Center in Aurora, Ill. to improve their record to 17-2 overall. All three of Hillsdale’s wins at the crossover tournament were by identical 3-0 scores.

Hillsdale beat the Screaming Eagles in the three sets by scores of 25-21, 25-17 and 25-18.

After trailing 11-7 in the first set, the Chargers were in firm control throughout, while deploying varying lineups and getting production from many different players.

Hillsdale had a team hitting percentage of .404 in the match, completing a weekend of dominating play and model efficiency on offense and with its passing game.

Few players were as dominant throughout the tournament as senior outside hitter Ashlee Crowder, who put the finishing touches on a great weekend with an outstanding performance versus Southern Indiana. She had a match-high 17 kills and a .533 hitting percentage, with just one error in the entire match. She also contributed eight digs, two assists and one service ace for the Chargers.

Crowder and senior Clara Leutheuser were each named to the All-Tournament Team.

Playing on the other side of Crowder, but just as effectively, was sophomore Caitlin Kopmeyer. She set a new career-high with 13 kills, a .409 hitting percentage, and nine digs. Crowder and Kopmeyer gave the Chargers consistent offense, and were the ultimate momentum stoppers in this match.

Senior Apryl Schmucker handed out 41 assists, while senior Morgan Podkul had a team-high 14 digs. Junior Lauren Grover had seven kills and a .500 hitting percentage for the Chargers.

Hillsdale now has an all-time crossover tournament record of 10-2. The team has gone 3-0 in three of the four years of the tournament’s existence.

Hillsdale 3, Indianapolis 0
October 14, 2011 - Back in September, the Charger volleyball team exorcised some demons by defeating the University of Indianapolis Greyhounds in five dramatic sets. Friday evening, at the GLIAC/GLVC Crossover, the two teams met again, and Hillsdale College delivered one of their finest performances of recent years.

The Chargers topped the Greyhounds, who were ranked 22nd in the nation, in three sets at the Great Lakes Center in Aurora, Illinois. Hillsdale won the sets by scores of 25-23, 25-21 and 25-22.

The Chargers, ranked 8th in the nation, will look for a clean sweep at the crossover when it takes on Southern Indiana at 2 p.m. EDT Saturday.

It was a loud and intense atmosphere at the Great Lakes Center in Aurora, Ill., site of this year's tournament. Ferris State and Northern Kentucky, two other nationally ranked teams, were playing on the court right next to Hillsdale and Indianapolis. There were whistles, cheering, shouting and general white noise spilling over from every angle of the court. But players on both teams did an amazing job of focusing on the task at hand, playing championship-caliber volleyball in the middle of the tight and ear-splitting environment.

The Greyhounds opened the match in control, and led 20-17 in the first set. But Hillsdale stormed back to finish the set on an 8-3 run, edging Indy 25-23.

From that point, the Chargers raised their game to a new level, performing at a very high level in all phases of the sport – serving, passing, setting and hitting. Everyone who played for Hillsdale, played extremely well in a match that was a joy for volleyball purists to watch.

Hillsdale jumped out to a 15-8 lead in the second set, and was able to withstand a late rally by the Greyhounds. Indy came back to tie the set 19-19, but Hillsdale scored four of the next five points to gain some valuable separation space. Senior Ashlee Crowder had two kills and a block assist in the 4-1 run, which by itself, was not huge, but played a big part in the Chargers’ ability to finish off the Greyhounds in the set.

An 8-0 run in the third set turned a 7-4 deficit into a 12-7 lead for Hillsdale in the third set, preventing the scrappy Greyhounds from building up any momentum. As they always do, the Greyhounds made a run to eventually tie the set 17-17. It was back and forth from there, until the Chargers shook loose of the Greyhounds with four straight points to take the set from 20-20 to 24-20. Crowder, a big force in the match, again played a part in the run with two kills in the 4-0 run.

Indianapolis had no answer for Hillsdale All-Americans Crowder and Clara Leutheuser up front. Crowder had a team-high 16 kills and had a .324 attack percentage. Leutheuser had 14 kills and four total blocks, including two solos.

Sophomore Caitlin Kopmeyer played one of the finest matches of her career, given the opponent and circumstance. She had a season-high 11 kills, had a .474 hitting percentage, and came up with eight digs and two service aces.

Senior Apryl Schmucker made terrific decisions with her sets and led all players with 47 assists. Senior Morgan Podkul had 15 digs, and two surprising kills, including the one that clinched the victory for the Chargers.

Hillsdale 3, Wisconsin-Parkside 0
October 14, 2011 – The No. 8-ranked Hillsdale College volleyball team opened the 2011 Mizuno GLIAC/GLVC Challenge Tournament in a dominant way Friday afternoon.

The Chargers dispatched the University of Wisconsin-Parkside 3-0 in the tournament’s opening contest. Hillsdale won the sets by scores of 25-15, 25-19 and 25-23.

Hillsdale was red-hot offensively, with a team hitting percentage of .402. Three of its top players – Clara Leutheuser, Ashlee Crowder and Lauren Grover – each had a hitting percentage of at least .545 in the win over the Rangers.

The Chargers built big early leads in each set. Set one saw Hillsdale up 16-7 at one point. The team had a 19-9 lead in the second set, with set three being the most tightly played.

Grover was hitting an other-worldly .909 through the match’s first two sets, and finished with 12 kills and a .688 hitting percentage. Crowder’s 14 kills led the team, and she picked up five total blocks. Leutheuser had six kills, including the one to finish off the match, and had six total blocks.

Senior Apryl Schmucker had 39 assists, three service aces and six digs, while sophomore Bekah Draves added seven kills to the team’s offensive show. Senior Morgan Podkul led Hillsdale with nine digs, while Brogan Wells and Caitlin Kopmeyer had six digs apiece.