OLIVET, MICH.-- The Trine volleyball team swept Olivet 3-0 (25-14, 25-21, 25-22) in MIAA-action Wednesday night at Cutler Event Center.
Five players finished with six or more kills to lead a balanced Thunder attack, while another stingy defensive effort helped secure the victory. Trine outhit the Comets by a .216 to .030 margin, and notched 41 kills to Olivet's 25. Leading the attack was Carly Searles (Levering, Mich./Petoskey), who hit at a hot .562 clip on her way to 11 kills, 28 assists and nine digs. Searles has now hit .500 or better with 10-plus kills in each of her last two matches. She entered the match leading all MIAA setters in kills per set. Trine improves to 10-2 overall, 5-2 in conference play. Olivet falls to 3-9 overall, 1-6 in MIAA matches.
Olivia Deck (Lansing, Mich./Grand Ledge), Taylor Rabel (Muncie, Ind./Muncie Central) and Lauren Verkamp (Franklin, Ind./Franklin Community) each notched seven kills for Trine. Verkamp also notched four service aces. Megan Verkamp (Franklin, Ind./Franklin Community) added six kills, while Mikayla Carpenter (Huntington, Ind./Huntington North) notched a match-high 18 digs.
Marissa Guile and Emma Brann each notched seven kills to lead the Olivet attack. Stefanie Lang entered the match second in the MIAA in kills per set, but was held to just five kills and a -.043 hitting percentage. Mona Hinamanu notched a team-high 12 digs for the Comets.
Trine held Olivet to -.042 and -.028 hitting percentages in the first two sets while hitting .250 and .243 respectively. A five-point rally helped break open the first set, turning a 10-8 Thunder lead into a 15-8 advantage. That rally was part of a 10-2 run that ended with Trine holding a 20-10 lead.
A hot start paced the second-set victory, as Trine raced out to an 8-2 lead. The Thunder led by as much as eight as they went up 2-0 in the match.
Trine took the lead early in the final set, but had to hold on late as Olivet closed the deficit to 21-19. Back-to-back kills by Searles and Deck restored a four-point advantage. After an attack error, Deck put away another kill to make the score 24-20. After two Comet points, Laura Hartman (Laingsburg, Mich./Laingsburg) added the last of her three kills to close out the victory.
Trine gets a break from conference play when they travel to Illinois Tech for a tri-match this Saturday, Sept. 27. The Thunder will face ITU at 10 a.m. before taking on Earlham at noon.