GRAND RAPIDS, Mich. – The 25th-ranked Calvin University women's volleyball team celebrated senior day with 3-0 win over The University of Olivet by the scores of 25-15, 25-9 and 25-17 in Wednesday night's home finale at Van Noord Arena.
Calvin (22-3, 6-1 MIAA) seniors
Aerin Baker (Saugatuck, Mich./Saugatuck),
Emma Ekblaw (Chesterton, Ind./Chesterton) and
Madison Wiersema (Fremont, Mich./Western Michigan Christian/Arkansas St.) made the most of their final home matches, combining for 25 kills against only three errors to go with six total blocks.
The Knights opened the match strong, building an 18-6 lead on the way to taking the first set 25-15. Baker and Wiersema each recorded four kills in the set as Calvin hit .375 on the attack to take a 1-0 overall lead in the match.
The second set was more of the same, as Ekblaw helped the Knights to an early lead by serving four straight points and
Lina Kasuboski (Racine, Wis./Union Grove) followed by serving 10 straight points to push a 9-7 advantage into a 19-7 lead. Ekblaw and
Caralee Schipper (Mount Brydges, Ontario/Strathroy District Collegiate Institute) each recorded three kills while Mara Boa (Atlanta, Ga./Riverwood International Charter) added three blocks as Calvin hit .500 in the set.
The Comets battled in the third set, but Kasuboski had two more strong serving runs of at least four straight points to help Calvin build a lead and pull away down the stretch.
Sarah Bradley (Clarkston, Mich./Everest Collegiate) recorded five kills in the set and Wiersema chipped in four more to secure the sweep.
Wiersema led the Knights with 10 kills for the match, followed by eight from Ekblaw and seven apiece from Baker and Bradley. Calvin finished the night with a .354 attack efficiency.
Tryna Vander Zwaag (Hamilton, Mich./Holland Christian) and Kasuboski led the Knights with nine digs apiece, with Kasuboski also adding three service aces.
Grace Spoelma (Caledonia, Mich./Grand Rapids Christian) led Calvin with 13 assists.
COACH'S COMMENT: "I thought we got the job done and played the way we needed to play," Calvin head women's volleyball coach Dr.
Amber Warners (who recorded her 699th career win in the match). "Our hitting was pretty good. We started to come around on our passing and in general were pretty consistent."
NEXT UP: Calvin women's volleyball will return to action on Friday, November 7, when it travels to Alma College for the regular season finale. That match is scheduled to start at 6:30 PM.
