Women's Volleyball Seeds Hold in Quarterfinals
GRAND RAPIDS, Mich. - (TOURNAMENT PAGE) - The opening round of the 2022 Wolverine-Hoosier Athletic Conference (WHAC) Women's Volleyball Tournament played out as the seeds promised with the top four advancing to the semifinals.
Top-seeded Cornerstone swept No. 8 Concordia while second-seeded Siena Heights also posted a 3-0 win over No. 7 Aquinas. Indiana Tech, the No. 3 seed, needed all five sets against No. 6 Lourdes to advance and fourth-seeded Madonna defeated No. 5 UM-Dearborn 3-1.
The semifinals will take place on Friday, Nov. 11 at Cornerstone with the championship match slated for Saturday.
First Round - Wednesday, Nov. 9
#1 Cornerstone (20-0, 30-3) def. #8 Concordia (7-13, 12-11), 3-0 (25-13, 25-23, 25-11)
The top seed built on an early 11-5 in the opening set and cruised to the win. Concordia won some extended rallies in the second set and held an 12-8 lead until two aces sparked a 5-0 Cornerstone run to tie the set at 13. The teams traded points and CUAA again held a slight advantage at 20-18, but a apri of kills and a combined block sealed the second set win for the Golden Eagles. The third set belonged to Cornerstone as the Golden Eagles built a 7-1 early lead and expanded it to 21-10 before closing out the sweep.
Stat Leaders
Kills: Kaylee Dykema 9 (CS); Kayla Peters 9 (CUAA)
Assists: Aubrey Lenz 29 (CS); Abigail Austin 12 (CUAA)
Digs: Patsy Morris 22 (CS); McKenzie Peters 20 (CUAA)
Blocks: Kaylee Dykema, Kylie Barron 5 (CS); Jessalyn Peavyhouse 5 (CUAA)
#4 Madonna (11-9, 15-12) def. #5 UM-Dearborn (10-10, 14-18), 3-1 (19-25, 25-18, 25-22, 25-21)
UM-Dearborn jumped early, building a 20-12 to force a timeout from Madonna. The Crusaders mounted a comeback that came up short to give the Wolverines set one. MU stormed to the early lead in the second set and continued to push gaining a XX-point lead before closing out to tie the match. The teams battled in the third set, landing on a tie at 10 until MU went on a 10-3 run for a 21-14 lead. UMD clawed back winnign the next four points back to within three but the Crusaders held the Wolverines at bay. The fourth set was even closer as neither team gained much of an advantage. Madonna finally gained some breathing room at 14-11 and held the lead until UMD took the lead at 19-18. MU tied the score at 20 and and took five of the next six points for the win.
Stat Leaders
Kills: Kielee Tondryk 17 (UMD); Jaeda Porter, Molly MIller 11 (MU)
Assists: Kacie Stoneburner 38 (MU); Regan Rose 38 (UMD)
Digs: Kenzie Mertz 22 (UMD); Jamie Ciacico 18 (U)
Blocks: Kira Buza, DJ Sargent 7 (MU); Brooke Wetheril 4 (UMD)
#3 Indiana Tech (14-6, 27-6) def. #6 Lourdes (9-11, 13-17), 3-2 (17-25, 22-25, 26-24, 26-24,15-2)
Indiana Tech rallied from two sets down to capture the five-set match. Lourdes scored eight of the first nine points in the opening set and grew the lead to as many as nine at 19-10. The Warriors made a late push to close to within five at 22-17 before LU finished the next three points. Another a quick start in the second set helped the Gray Wolves lead early until Tech pulled even at 19. Lourdes staved off a Warrior push to go up 2-0. The third stanza was tight through with neither team enjoying more than a three-point lead. Tech went on a 9-3 run to go up 21-17 only to see Lourdes answer with the next five points. The Warriors captured the next three points for a 24-22 lead and traded points before finally closing the set. The fourth set started much like the third with both teams hanging tight until Lourdes went on an 9-2 to build a 22-15 advantage. IT scored the next five points and staved off three match points before scoring the final five to force a deciding set. Set five belonged to the Warriors with an 9-1 lead. Lourdes put another point on the board and then Tech scored the final six for the win.
Stat Leaders
Kills: Noelle VanOort 18 (IT); McKenna Hall 15 (LU)
Assists: Katey Stakolich 37 (LU); Kelsey Schaldenbrand 26 (IT)
Digs: Jacey Blust 36 (IT); Alli Plasencio 25 (LU)
Blocks: Havilyn Cummings 5 (IT); Lydia Landoll, Cammy Smith 4 (LU)
#2 Siena Heights (18-2, 24-7) def. #7 Aquinas (8-12, 12-23), 3-0 (25-17, 28-26, 25-15)
Tied at 10-10 in the opening set, SHU made a 7-1 run and another 4-0 run to stop an Aquinas comeback. The second set proved closer as the teams battle back-and-forth until Aquinas emerged with a 22-20 lead. SHU responded with two quck points only to see Aquinas do the same and force match point. After exchanging points, Siena Heights took a 27-26 lead on a service ace and grabbed set point off an error. The third set was tight early with SHU holding a 15-12 lead before scoring the next five points to put the match out of reach.
Stat Leaders
Kills: Devyne Eisnehauer 13 (SHU); Abbi Perkins 9 (AQ)
Assists: Aubrey Bates 37 (SHU); Cassie Sustrich 21 (AQ)
Digs: Payton Osborne 15 (SHU); Jordyn Carlyle 15 (SHU)
Blocks: Samee Teachworth 3 (AQ); Aubrey Bates 2 (SHU)