TIFFIN, Ohio – The 11th-ranked Calvin University women's volleyball team saw its 11-match winning streak come to an end in a five-set defeat at Heidelberg University on Friday night.
Calvin (19-3) won the first two sets 25-21 and 25-15, but Heidelberg (23-4) came back to win the final three sets 25-21, 25-21 and 16-14 to win the match.
The Knights never trailed in the opening set as
Mary Boa (Atlanta, Ga./Riverwood International Charter) set the tone on the attack with five kills to help the Knights win the set 25-21 and take a 1-0 lead in the match.
Calvin continued its strong start in the second set as the Knights recorded five service aces, led by two from
Jordan Steen (Hudsonville, Mich./Unity Christian) while
Sarah Bradley (Clarkston, Mich./Everest Collegiate) had four kills in the set to push the Knights to a 25-15 win and a 2-0 lead.
After recording only 13 kills in the first two sets, Heidelberg started to get its attack going in the third set with 17 kills and closed strong with six of the final eight points to extend the match with a 25-21 set-three win.
The Knights opened the fourth set with a 9-6 lead, but the Student Princes answered with a 9-0 run to lead 15-9. Calvin rallied to cut the deficit to 22-21 late in the set, but Heidelberg answered with the final three points to win 25-21 and force a fifth and deciding game.
The fifth set went back and forth with seven ties and three lead changes. Calvin opened with the first three points and had a match point opportunity with a 14-13 lead late, but Heidelberg finished the comeback with three straight points to win the set 16-14 and secure the win.
Bradley led Calvin with 19 kills to go with 14 digs.
Allison Moore (Jupiter, Fla./Jupiter Christian) added 13 kills and hit .565 for the match while Boa finished with 11 kills and four blocks.
Kate Van Appledorn (Holland, Mich./Holland Christian) finished with nine kills and five blocks.
Olivia Peterson (Muskegon, Mich./North Muskegon) had 54 assists, 10 digs and six kills.
Tryna Vander Zwaag (Hamilton, Mich./Holland Christian) finished with 18 digs.
The defeat was the Knights' first five-set loss of the season and dropped their record to 4-1 in those matches.
The win marked the 18th win in the last 19 matches for Heidelberg, which entered the week ranked 50th in the National Power Index (NPI).
NEXT UP: Calvin women's volleyball will return to action tomorrow (Saturday, October 31) when it plays a triangular at Case Western Reserve University (CWRU). The Knights will open the day with a 1:00 PM match against William Smith College before facing CWRU at 3:00 PM.
