Yellow Jackets go 1-1 at Trine tri-match

ANGOLA, IND. – The Defiance College volleyball team finished with a 1-1 record in a tri-match against Alma (Mich.) College and Trine (Ind.) University in Angola, Ind.  The Yellow Jackets topped Alma, 3-0, before dropping to host Trine in five sets, 3-2.

The Yellow Jackets (8-7) disposed of Alma (8-9) in match one 25-22, 25-13, 25-14.

Two sophomores hooked up to start the day for DC, as Hope Neargarder (Union City/Mississinawa Valley) setup Kelsey Tietje (Deshler/Patrick Henry) for the kill and the 1-0 lead. Freshman Jaidyn Patridge (Toledo/Springfield) then showed off her serving skills, picking up three straight points for DC.  Her first point came via a kill from Ari Mahaffey (Porter, Ind./Chesterton).  Patridge then served up two straight aces to give DC the 4-0 lead.

Alma would battle back to tie things up 12-12 and eventually hold a 17-14 lead. DC battled back though and took the 25-22 first set win thanks to back-to-back Meredith Shank (Maumee/Springfield) kills and a big block from Tietje and Neargarder to run off the last three points for DC.

Tietje and Bree Anderson (Huntertown, Ind./Carroll) led the way for the Yellow Jackets in set one with four kills apiece.

Neargarder and Tietje started off the second set the same way they ended the first one, with a block.  Alicia Kalik (South Lyon, Mich./South Lyon) served up two straight for DC, including an ace, which gave the Yellow Jackets an early 3-0 advantage. Alma cut the lead to two at 4-2 before Patridge served two more points for the Yellow Jackets.

The Yellow Jackets would never let Alma within three points, as they dominated the opposition in set two. DC kept the slim lead before Caroline Hesterman (Fort Wayne, Ind./North Side) went back to serve with the Yellow Jackets up 9-4.  She would serve five straight points for DC before giving the serve back to Alma with DC holding a commanding 14-5 lead.  Anderson helped out Hesterman with those five points with two kills and a block assist with Kalik.

A short time later Mahaffey would take her turn with a string of serves for the Yellow Jackets.  Mahaffey served four points in a row to push the lead to 19-7.  Kalik and Anderson once again help out their teammate.  This time Kalik came up with two blocks, one assisted with Anderson, a kill, and an assist while Anderson added another kill. DC cruised to victory in the second set with back-to-back-to-back kills from Danielle Robbins (Westland, Mich./Wayne Memorial), Anderson, and Patridge.  DC led 2-0 overall after the dominating 25-13 win.

Anderson again led the way offensively for DC in the second set, this time with five kills.

Alma came out trying to stay alive in set three, battling with DC early. Makayla Dennis (Bryan) then stepped back to serve for the Yellow Jackets, holding a 10-6 advantage. Dennis put up six straight points for DC to give the Yellow Jackets a big 15-6 lead.  Shank would put down two kills during Dennis' streak. Patridge came up a short time later, ending any hopes for an Alma comeback as she served three straight points for DC, including an ace, giving the Yellow Jackets a 20-9 lead. Kalik would put down the final point for DC on a kill from Mahaffey.  That marked the 25-14 final and a 3-0 victory for the Yellow Jackets.

Anderson led the team in kills with 11 for the match.  Shank added eight and Tietje added seven of her own.  Rebecca Kain (Orland, Ind./Prairie Heights) once again led the Yellow Jackets in digs with 13.  Hesterman came up with eight digs as Patridge and Kalik added seven apiece.

Kalik also led DC in assists with 25. Patridge served up a team high three aces in the match.

DC started the second match out hot against Trine (9-2), winning the first two sets 25-19, 25-15 before dropping the final three 11-25, 16-25, 9-15.

The Yellow Jackets started the second match where they left off the first one, jumping out to a 13-10 lead. Mahaffey widen the gap for DC, serving up three straight points.  It was the first time in the match that either team saw a server score more than two points in a row.  The Yellow Jackets and Trine again went back-and-forth before Patridge stepped up to give DC the late 21-15 lead with two straight points including another ace. Trine could not close the gap as DC finished what they started for a 25-19 first set victory.

Anderson again lead the Yellow Jackets in kills in set one, this time with four.  Mahaffey added three of her own.

DC came out and dominated the second set and led early by three serving points from Kain to push the lead to 4-1.  Hesterman added two more points just a little while later to give the away squad an early 7-3 lead. The Yellow Jackets slowly started to widen the gap throughout the second set.  Shank accounted for every point for DC in a 4-1 run that stretched the lead to 12-7.  She came up with three kills and an assist to give the Yellow Jackets the mid-set lead.

A barrage of kills from Tietje, Mahaffey, Neargarder, Anderson, and Kalik closed out the second set for a 25-15 DC win.  The Yellow Jackets held a 2-0 overall lead at that point.

Tietje, Anderson, and Shank lead DC in kills during set two with three apiece.  Kalik and Mahaffey both added two.

Trine came out to protect its home court in set three, jumping out to an 8-1 lead.  Shank and Mahaffey tried to keep the Yellow Jackets close, twice going for back-to-back kills to bring DC within five.  Trine would not allow it to get any closer than that throughout the set as the home team took set three 25-11.

Shank and Mahaffey would lead DC in kills during the third set with four and three, respectively.

In set four, Trine again jumped out to a quick lead, this time 8-2 before a Mahaffey kill put a stop to the run.  DC rallied back to 13-9 after back-to-back kills from Neargarder and Mahaffey.  Trine then went on a 5-0 run to push the lead out to 18-9 before a hitting error ended the run.  Dia Jackson (Detroit, Mich./Canton) tried to get DC back in it, serving three straight points.  She would find an ace with her first serve and an Anderson kill cut the lead to 18-13.  The Yellow Jackets would get no closer than within five points though as Trine tied things up 2-2 with a 25-16 fourth set win.

Shank and Mahaffey posted three kills apiece in the set to lead the DC offense.

The fifth set stayed close early.  After a Trine serving error to make it 1-1, Patridge found yet another ace to give DC the early 2-1 lead.  The two teams went back-and-forth as they played to a 5-5 tie.  Two kills from Anderson and another by Mahaffey would keep the Yellow Jackets in it early.

Trine then went on a big 5-0 lead in the shortened fifth set that put the momentum on the home team's side.  A kill from Shank followed by a Kalik ace cut the lead to three at 11-8.  That would be as close as DC got, eventually dropping the final set by a score of 15-9.

Mahaffey and Shank led the way in the kill department with 12 apiece in the full length match and Anderson added 11.  Kalik tallied 39 assists in the match.  Kain led the defense with 13 digs as Patridge and Kalik added seven apiece.

DC opens up Heartland Collegiate Athletic Conference play on Friday, Sept. 26.  The Yellow Jackets will put their 10-game regular-season HCAC winning streak on the line when they host Transylvania (Ky.) University.  Start time is set for 7 p.m.