October 8, 2007 - There has been no looking ahead this season for the Hillsdale College volleyball team. Coach Chris Gravel and his group of players make it a point to focus only on the opponent directly in front of them. But it would also be foolish to suggest that Oct. 12-13 has been without a red circle on the calendars of many of the players this season.

That's because the Chargers, now ranked No. 10 in the nation, face perhaps their most challenging road trip of the season, taking on Ferris State Friday night and No. 8-ranked Grand Valley Saturday afternoon. Start times for the matches are 7 p.m. and 4 p.m., respectively.

Very few venues in the GLIAC are as hostile as the ones in Big Rapids and Allendale, and Hillsdale faces both on back-to-back dayes. Last year the team also had to hit the road to face Ferris State and Grand Valley, and came away with a pair of memorable wins, 3-2 over the Bulldogs and a stunning 3-0 sweep of the then-defending national champion Lakers on Grand Valley's Homecoming weekend.

But that was last year, and all three teams come into play this weekend with different makeups.

In 2006, Hillsdale's volleyball team was a freight train, blasting through opponents to the tune of 22 3-0 sweeps in 29 matches. This year's team has been able to grind out workmanlike victories, relying on its experience, conditioning and clutch play to win some of the cloe matches it's had.

Hillsdale has earned every bit of its No. 10 national ranking, currntly enjoying a 12-match winning streak and a 30-match winning streak in GLIAC play. The conference record stands at 42, held by Northern Michigan's awesome teams from 1992-1994. The Chargers' last loss came to Wheeling-Jesuit during the Ashland University Tournament on Sept. 7. That match qualifies as an upset by any definition, but also served as a springboard to the team's current strong play.

Senior Melissa Bartlett has taken her game to a new level this season, her second in a Hillsdale uniform. She leads the GLIAC with 415 kills this season, which exceeds her total from all of 2006. Her 5.25 kills per game also leads the conference, and she has a .297 hitting percentage for the season. She's one of the few outside hitters that plays a full rotation, and her 257 digs are second on the team behind fellow senior Megan Howard.

Another player who has shown sharp improvement this season is sophomore Kittrick Smith, who joins Bartlett in giving Hillsdale a lethal 1-2 punch at outside hitter. Smith has a career-high 260 kills this season, and has gotten better at finding holes in the block and defense of the opponents. Smit hit .583 in three matches last week, all victories over the Upper Peninsula schools.

Junior Stephanie Booms has continued her brilliant all-around play in her third season, having passed the 1,000-assist barrier for the season last week. Booms sits 12 assists shy of taking over third place on Hillsdale's all-time assist list. Booms has 3,071 assists for her career. She has also become a more dangerous blocker and hitter this season. She has 86 kills (fifth on the team) and 39 total blocks, third on the team. Her accurate sets have allowed players like Emily Benett (161 kills) and Jen Pilot (108 kills) to reach new career-highs in kills.

In facing Ferris State and Grand Valley on back-to-back days, the Chargers face one of the ultimate challenges this tough conference can present. Last year, Ferris State packed its gym and placed its band right behind the Hillsdale bench to provide the Bulldogs with a significant home-court advantage. Ferris State won the first and fourth games of the match before Hillsdale prevailed in the fifth game, 15-11.

The win over Grand Valley on Oct. 6 remains a career highlight for many of Hillsdale's veteran players. It was the first time the Chargers had defeated the Lakers since October 1989, a win that was all the more sweet because of the 3-0 final score. The two teams never did meet again during the season, and it's certain that the result of the match hasn't been forgotton by the Laker veteran players, either.

Hillsdale and Grand Valley each stand at 10-0 in GLIAC play and each hold a two-game lead in their respective divisions. The winner of Saturday's match will have a big inside edge at hosting the conference tournament, which is scheduled for Nov. 10-11.

Both matches will feature live stats, which are free to view while the match is taking place. Both matches will also be webcast, with B2Networks handling the broadcast of the Ferris State match Friday. Check those schools' websites for details.