ANGOLA, Ind. – The Trine University women's volleyball team advanced in the Michigan Intercollegiate Athletic Association (MIAA) Tournament with a First Round win over Adrian College 3-2.
With the victory, the fourth-seeded Thunder will venture to Hope College for the Semifinal Round on Friday, November 5 to play the top seeded Fighting Dutch.
Trine holds a record of 17-15 and Adrian concludes their season at 7-19.
The Thunder limited their mistakes in the first set, garnering 16 kills to just three errors en route to a 25-22 win to take a 1-0 edge. It was a match-high side out percentage of 73% (17-23) that led to the win, with Olivia Jolliffe [Warren, Mich. / Cousino] and Francesca Queary [Midland, Mich. / H.H. Dow] leading the way with five kills apiece. After falling behind 16-14 and needing a timeout, a quick 5-0 run highlighted by a Kacie VanKalker [Dyer, Ind. / Illiana Christian] ace swung momentum back in Trine's favor.
Unfortunately for Trine, the second set would not go their way. Adrian was just a touch better on side out opportunities and took an early 12-6 lead that was difficult for the home squad to overcome. Chloe Behm [Albion, Ind. / Central Noble] had four kills in the set.
It was a second consecutive bad start for the Thunder in the third as the visiting Bulldogs went ahead 5-0, but a massive scoring run of 13-2 forced Adrian to utilize both of his timeouts in an attempt to stop the bleeding. Meara Finnegan [Blissfield, Mich. / Blissfield] was key in turning the tide for Trine with three straight serves that led to points and a kill to take a commanding 18-9 lead. The Thunder defeated Adrian in the third 25-14, aided by nine Bulldog errors.
The fourth set would be one where Trine lost themselves a little. The number five seed did not want to see their season come to an end and fought vigilantly in the fourth to force a winner-take-all fifth. Adrian had their highest attack percentage of the match in a stunning 25-12 win in the fourth.
The intensity inside Hershey Hall kicked into high gear as the Thunder faithful were on their feet in the final home set of the year. The duo of Jacqueline Baughman [Lake Orion, Mich. / Lutheran Northwest] and Jocelynn Nicholls [Montgomery, Mich. / Camden-Frontier] assisted on a pair of block assists to send a wave of momentum flowing through the arena and forced Adrian to use their first timeout at 7-3.
The rest would be effective as the Bulldogs collected four straight points to even the match and made Trine call one of their own. Jolliffe, Behm and Hannah Sands [Jonesville, Mich. / Jonesville] all sent balls crashing to the hardwood to give Trine a 12-9 lead, and the final three points of the match would belong to Trine to win 15-11.
Jolliffe had 14 kills to lead the offense and Baughman notched 39 assists. Serving the ball, VanKalker recorded a season-high four aces in the playoff victory. The Trine defense had 80 digs, the third-most in a match in the 2021 season. Samantha Carlin [Celina, Ohio / Celina] scooped up a team-best 19, with Rachel Campbell [Greenfield, Ind. / Greenfield Central], VanKalker and Jolliffe all getting in double figures as well.