ANGOLA, Ind. - The Trine University volleyball team gave it all they had against the No. 1 ranked Calvin College but fell in straight sets 3-0 (25-18, 25-11, 25-18). The loss drops the Thunder to 3-6 overall on the season and 0-3 in the MIAA.
All three sets were back-and-forth early on as the two sides exchanged 14 leads while the score was tied 18 different times. In the opening set the Thunder fell behind early but battled back to take a 6-5 lead. After again trading points the Thunder retook the lead 8-7. That would be their final lead however as the Knights slowly began to pull away late in the set as they went on a 10-5 run.
It was Trine who took the early lead in the second set, going up twice early on. But with the score tied 5-5, Calvin would finish out the set on a 20-6 run as the Thunder made 11 attack errors in the frame.
The final set was no different for the Thunder as they battled the top ranked Knights early on exchanging six lead changes and nine ties. Trine hung with the defending conference champions battling back to tie it at 11-11. Calvin would take a two point lead before the Thunder pulled back to within one, but that would be as close as they would get as the Knights held off Trine in the end.
Sophomore Lauren Verkamp (Franklin, Ind./Franklin Community) led the Thunder with eight kills on the night while twin sister Megan added seven. Fellow sophomore Olivia Deck (Lansing, Mich./Grand Ledge) and freshman Marissa German (Plymouth, Ind./Plymouth) finished with four kills each. Junior Carly Searles (Levering, Mich./Petoskey) dished out 20 assists for the Thunder while senior Carlee Felber (Newman, Calif./Orestimba) led the team with six digs.
Calvin finished with just seven more kills than the Thunder, but the difference came by way of attack errors as Trine had 24 compared to just seven for the Knights. On the night, the Thunder hit .024 while Calvin finished .413 from the floor.
Trine will now head to DePauw University for the Tigers Invitational. The two-day tournament begins on Sept. 13 as the Thunder face Concordia-Chicago at 4 p.m. and Rose-Hulman at 8 p.m. On Sept. 14 the Thunder will take on DePauw at 10 a.m. and Marietta at noon.
