ANGOLA, Ind. – The Trine University volleyball team picked up their second straight Michigan Intercollegiate Athletic Association (MIAA) victory on Wednesday with a 3-0 win over Adrian College.
On the season, Trine moves to 10-9 overall and 2-0 in conference action. Adrian falls to 4-11 on the year, 1-2 against MIAA opposition.
Jacqueline Baughman [Lake Orion, Mich. / Lutheran Northwest] started the set with two early kills out of sequence for the Thunder to build momentum for the Thunder in the first set. An Olivia Jolliffe [Warren, Mich. / Cousino] kill sparked a 6-0 run as Trine took a 13-8 lead.
Later in the first, Chloe Behm [Albion, Ind. / Central Noble] scored on three consecutive possessions, two via block assists and a kill. Samantha Carlin [Celina, Ohio / Celina] put it out of reach with a service ace on their way to a 25-21 win.
Trine responded to a 3-0 run for Adrian at the start of the second with a 7-1 scoring spurt, highlighted by a monster swing from Hannah Sands [Jonesville, Mich. / Jonesville] for a kill and a pair of aces by Jolliffe.
Francesca Queary [Midland, Mich. / H.H. Dow] and Jocelynn Nicholls [Montgomery, Mich. / Camden-Frontier] connected for back-to-back kills to force a Bulldogs timeout at 20-13. The break would refocus Adrian, as they went on a 7-0 tear to tie the match up at 20. The final five points were achieved by three Baughman kills, one from Jolliffe and an attack error in a 25-23 victory.
It was a near perfect set offensively for the Thunder in the third set with nine kills to only one error. Trine pulled away to a 25-9 match-clinching third set with a .571 hitting percentage. A 10-0 run with five service aces from Carlin made it 22-7, and Trine clinched the third with a pair of Bulldog errors.
Jolliffe led the way for the Thunder offense with 13 kills in 27 attacks and a .444 hitting percentage. Baughman contributed with 27 assists, seven kills, just one off her season-high, and a team-best 10 digs. Carlin, who entered the match second in NCAA DIII in total digs, had nine in the contest. Carlin also had six total aces, the most in a game for the freshman in 2021.
Next on the docket is another match inside Hershey Hall on Friday, October 1 when Saint Mary's College comes to Angola. That match will start at 7 pm and be a non-conference match, with the MIAA event against the Belles coming later in the month.