ANGOLA, Ind.-- The Trine volleyball team swept Kalamazoo 25-18, 25-11, 25-22 to earn a key MIAA victory Wednesday night in Hershey Hall.
The Thunder allowed the Hornets very few offensive opportunities on the evening, as they held Kalamazoo to a -.096 hitting percentage and just 13 kills in the entire match. The Thunder notched 53 digs in the match to 43 for the Hornets. Mikayla Carpenter (Huntington, Ind./Huntington North) paced the defensive effort from the back row with 18 digs. Trine improved to 10-12 overall, 6-5 in the MIAA. The victory pulled Trine into third-place in the conference. Kalamazoo fell to 1-20 overall, 0-11 in conference matches.
Megan Verkamp (Franklin, Ind./Franklin Community) paced the attack efforts with nine kills on a .273 hitting percentage. She also passed out 10 assists. Taylor Rabel (Muncie, Ind./Muncie Central) added eight kills and seven digs, while Lauren Verkamp notched 13 digs for the second-straight match.
Paige Johnson led the Hornet attack with four kills. Dana DeVito paced Kalamazoo's defensive efforts with 13 digs.
Janaya Wilder (Decatur, Ind./Bellmont) started the first set off with a pair of aces for the Thunder and Trine only built on that performance as they never trailed the rest of the set. Wilder, Megan Verkamp and Shannon Scott (Vicksburg, Mich./Vicksburg) each put away three kills in the opening set.
Wilder held serve through a nine-point run in the second set as the Thunder raced out to a 9-1 lead. Trine held the Hornets to a -.171 hitting percentage in the set, their lowest mark of the night. Kalamazoo did not top a .000 hitting percentage in any set.
The Thunder fought back from a six-point deficit in the final set, taking the lead for good at 21-20 on a Megan Verkamp kill. Kills by Verkamp and Morgan Harris (Crown Point, Ind./Merrillville) closed out the victory after Kalamazoo closed back to 23-22.
Trine returns to action next Tuesday, Oct. 20 when they host Hope at 6:30 p.m. The match is part of Trine's "Think Pink Week" in support of breast cancer awareness and research.