SPRINGFIELD, Ohio-- The Trine volleyball team was swept by Ohio Northern, 25-21, 25-13, 25-19 Friday night in the Wittenberg Fall Classic.
The Polar Bears entered the match with five players averaging two or more kills per set and took advantage of that depth, as five players notched five or more kills. Haley Potter put away a match-high nine kills. Ellie Gillespie added seven kills and nine digs. Janaya Wilder (Decatur, Ind./Bellmont) led Trine with seven kills and seven digs. Olivia Deck (Lansing, Mich./Grand Ledge) added a season-high six kills and notched three block assists. Trine fell to 3-6 overall. ONU is now 7-3 overall and is receiving top 25 votes in the AVCA Division III poll.
Lauren and Megan Verkamp (Franklin, Ind./Franklin Community) each added six kills for the Thunder. Lauren Verkamp was one of two Thunder to reach double-digit digs as she finished with 10. Mikayla Carpenter (Huntington, Ind./Huntington North) notched a match-high 19 digs. Carpenter is averaging 6.5 digs per set over the last two matches.
Trine played its best set offensively in the opening set as the Thunder hit .195. A eight-point run with Lauren Verkamp holding serve brought Trine within 22-20. Verkamp notched an ace, and the Thunder added points on kills by Wilder and Shannon Scott (Vicksburg, Mich./Vicksburg) as well as a block by Deck and Scott. The two teams then traded points before ONU closed out the set with the final two points.
The Polar Bears hit .300 on their way to winning the second set. ONU notched four blocks in the second set to take the Thunder hitters out of their rhythm.
Trine was able to keep pace through most of the final set. Back-to-back kills by Megan and Lauren Verkamp gave the Thunder a 17-16 lead, but ONU responded with four-straight to take the lead for good. Trine couldn't get any closer than two the rest of the way.
The Thunder will face Otterbein and Heidelberg tomorrow at the Wittenberg Fall Classic.