MEMPHIS, Tennessee - The Wilmington College volleyball team split a pair of matches on day one of the Rhodes College Classic, defeating Huntington College (Alabama) 25-16, 25-19, 27-25 and falling to Westminster College (Missouri) in a five-set thriller 19-25, 25-17, 25-21, 24-26, 17-15 in the nightcap.
"I'm really proud of the growth the program as a whole has embraced over the past year," Head Coach Sophie Windover said. "We are a team ready to compete, and we represent our College with pride. The team genuinely loves each other and wants success to whoever is on the court."
In the match with the Hawks, service runs from Blake O'Brien, Andie Dolven and Sofia Thomas in the middle portions of the first set capped by a kill from Trinity VanDusen put the Fightin' Quakers up 21-12, a lead WC would not relinquish. Huntington found itself trailing by just two, 10-8, in the early stages until a Sydney Geibel kill sent O'Brien to the service line. The junior from St. Louis, Missouri, serve six straight times to build a 16-8 advantage. Huntington would get back to within two points at 20-18, but a kill from Thomas sent her to the service line at 21-18. The Boone County High School alumna served two aces in the ensuing three points to give the Quakers a 2-0 lead.
In set three, it was Huntington's turn to use a service run to take a lead as Izzy Valderperas served six straight points to put the Hawks up 21-16. A kill from Joy Bebe a few points later got the Quakers within three at 23-20, but side outs gave Huntington three set points. Wilmington saved all of them, and kills from Thomas and Lili Green tied at 25-25 gave the Quakers the sweep.
Wilmington hit a .248 clip for the match with Geibel (15 kills) and Thomas (10 kills) leading the way offensively. Setter Andie Dolven dished out 34 assists while O'Brien tallied 29 digs in the back row. Kennedy Chambers led the Hawks with eight kills and a .286 hitting percentage in defeat.
In the match with the Blue Jays, Wilmington took set one despite hitting an even .000 for the set as the Quakers tallied four blocks and forced nine other attack errors from Westminster. After a 25-17 win in set two, the Blue Jays hit a .182 clip and put down 14 kills to take a 2-1 set lead. The fourth set looked to swing back Wilmington's way as a kill from Bailey Pohlman followed by a setting error put the Quakers ahead 14-8. Westminster answered, however, and in thunderous fashion, going on a 16-5 run to earn five match points at 24-19. Just like in set three of match No. 1, Wilmington was up to the challenge. A service error got things started, and sent Thomas to the service line at 24-20. Three Blue Jay attack errors along with a kill from Victoria Long tied the set, and consecutive put downs from Dolven forced a decisive set five.
The decisive and final set was a back-and-forth affair the entire way. Neither team led by more than two points until a Bebe kill at 10-8 put WC up three. The Quakers would hold that lead and earn two match points at 14-12 and a third at 15-14, but couldn't stay in system when it mattered most as consecutive Westminster kills followed by a service ace ended the match.
Wilmington hit a slightly higher attack percentage (.131 to .124) in the match, but Westminster put down nine more kills (55-46) and tallied 16 service aces. The Quakers countered with a 10-5 edge in blocks.
Individually, the Blue Jay trio of Eryka Wanyonyi, Malena Bixby and Haley Menke combined for 32 kills while Gracie Henrikson had 24 digs. Thomas, Pohlman and Geibel added 26 combined kills for WC while Dolven assisted on 35-of-46 kills.
"We fought hard," commented Windover. "I've not seen the poise and focus in this group before this weekend, and I'm looking forward to seeing them compete the rest of the fall."
Wilmington will conclude the Rhodes College Classic with matches against the host Lynx and LeTourneau University (Texas) tomorrow (Saturday).
