CHICAGO, Ill. – The 19th-ranked Calvin University women's volleyball team recorded wins over Aurora University (3-0) and number-12 North Park University (3-1) in a Friday triangular at North Park.
The Knights won the opening match against Aurora in three (25-22, 25-22, 28-26) before coming back to win in four against North Park (21-25, 25-20, 25-18, 25-17).
Match 1
Calvin (8-2) opened the day with a hard fought three-set sweep of Aurora (5-5).
The Knights started strong in the opening set as four kills from
Emma Ekblaw (Chesteron, Ind./Chesterton) helped them take a 1-0 overall lead.
The second set went back and forth with 12 ties and six lead changes, but
Tianna Stygstra (Holland, Mich./Holland Christian) recorded the final kill on the Knights' third set point to give Calvin a 2-0 lead in the match.
Calvin looked to be in control late in the third set with a 22-17 lead, but the Spartans roared back to tie the score at 24-24. The Knights were able to overcome the late momentum from Aurora, however, saving two set points before putting the match away with a block from
Vanessa Martinez (Hudsonville, Mich./Wyoming) and
Avery Ekkens (Portage, Mich./Kalamazoo Christian) to secure the sweep.
Ekblaw finished with nine kills and hit .421 on the attack, while
Jasmine Namminga (Pella, Iowa/Pella Community) hit .429 with six kills and added five blocks (four solo).
Mackenzie Gerig (Rochester, N.Y./Hilton) led the team with 19 digs. Martinez had four blocks, five kills and three service aces.
Match 2
The Knights finished off the Friday sweep with a four-set win over 12th-ranked North Park.
Calvin (9-2) fell behind early as North Park (10-1) closed out a strong opening set with a 25-21 win.
The Knights would answer in the second set, taking control midway through the set before closing strong to a 25-20 win to tie the match at 1-1. Namminga led the charge in the set, recording seven kills on eight attack attempts (.875 efficiency) and adding one solo block.
It was
Aerin Baker's (Saugatuck, Mich./Saugatuck) turn on the attack in the fourth set as she recorded four kills to lead the charge in a 25-18 Calvin win as the Knights built a 2-1 overall lead.
North Park overcame a slow start in the fourth game and trailed 17-16 late in the set, but the Knights closed out the Vikings with an 8-1 run to end the set and the match to hand the Vikings their first loss of the season.
The Knights hit .203 on the attack for the match, led by 12 kills from Baker and 10 kills (.526 efficiency) from Namminga.
Calvin also made life difficult for the Vikings in the serving game as it recorded 11 aces. Gerig led the team with four aces and 16 digs.
Lina Kasuboski (Racine, Wis./Union Grove) and
Delaney Kemp (Frisco, Texas/Frisco Centennial) each finished with three aces.
Vanessa Martinez recorded eight blocks, while Ekkens finished with nine kills and 15 digs.
COACH'S COMMENT: "I was happy with the way we came to play for both matches ," Calvin head women's volleyball coach Dr.
Amber Warners said. "We played two good teams. I thought our defense and serving made a difference."
NEXT UP: Calvin women's volleyball will return to action tomorrow (Saturday, September 21) when it faces Edgewood College in a match at North Central College at 12:00 PM (CT).
