Volleyball loses at Regionals
The University of Indianapolis volleyball team lost to No. 8 Hillsdale College 3-1 in the Regional Championship match on Nov. 20.
The Greyhounds took a 12-7 lead in the first set after numerous kills by senior outside middle hitter Kristina Hefferan and a block by senior middle hitter Courtney Anglemyer and freshman setter Meghan Binkerd.
The teams battled back-and-forth well past the 25 point mark. With the score set at 31-30 Hillsdale, the Chargers had two kills that put the set away in their favor, 33-31.
UIndy came back from a 13-7 deficit in the second set to even the score at 20. However, the Chargers took back the lead and won the set at 25-21.
UIndy started the third set trailing, 7-1, but eventually saw a 7-0 run that gave them control.
Junior outside hitter Kristina Kerrigan finished the set with a kill and a 25-22 victory for UIndy.
Hillsdale started a 6-2 run in the fourth set which forced an UIndy timeout. The team came back and took the lead, 16-11. The Greyhounds closed within two, 19-17, but the Chargers scored six of the last eight points to win the set 25-19.
In the Midwest Regional semifinal game, the Greyhounds defeated No. 11 Ferris State University 3-0 on Nov. 19.
Hefferan finished the match with 15 kills, 11 digs and three blocks, while Anglemyer finished with 12 kills and five blocks. Binkerd also contributed to the win with 35 assists and four kills.
Ferris State led the Greyhounds by four at the start of the match and built an eight point lead, 18-10. However, a kill by Hefferan pulled UIndy within three.
Hefferan took to the service line after a kill which sparked an 8-0 run for the Greyhounds. UIndy clinched the victory 25-22.
In the second set, FSU took the lead again with a 6-2 run. The Greyhounds snapped back after back-to-back kills by Kerrigan and started a 7-1 run over the Bulldogs.
A kill by Anglemyer pushed the lead to 20-15 for UIndy. Freshman middle hitter Julia Watkins sent a kill into the Bulldogs’ territory and sealed the victory for UIndy, 25-22.
In the final set of the match, the Greyhounds broke a tie score of 10-10 with a 9-1 run.
Junior defensive specialist Amy Oldenburg controlled the service line for six points. Anglemyer and Hefferan each had two kills during the run. UIndy won the set, 25-18.
The Greyhounds defeated the University of Southern Indiana 3-1 in the first round of the NCAA Tournament on Nov. 18. Kerrigan had a career-high of 26 kills and a team high of 12 digs. Hefferan contributed 20 kills and 11 digs against the Screaming Eagles.
The first set was played back-and-forth as the Greyhounds and Screaming Eagles each scored six points before USI took the lead with a 5-1 run.
UIndy came back and tied the score 13-13 after Anglemyer and Crawford blocked a USI player’s kill. However, the Greyhounds could not overcome the Screaming Eagles, who won the set with a 25-22 victory.
The second set began with a Greyhound lead of 3-1. But USI turned the game around and made the score 6-4. UIndy continued to trail by two before a 10-2 run gave them the lead with a score of 17-11.
A kill by Hefferan, a block by Binkerd and a pair of kills by Kerrigan gave UIndy the victory with a final score of 25-17.
At the start of the third set, the Screaming Eagles took the lead, 11-7, but UIndy came out of a timeout break with four kills by Kerrigan, which sparked an 11-0 run for the Greyhounds. USI came back within one point before two kills by Anglemyer sealed the set 25-21.
In the fourth and final set of the match, the Greyhounds scored over the Screaming Eagles, 18-12. However, USI managed its own 9-3 run and tied the score at 21-21. The Greyhounds used a kill by Hefferan, an attack error by USI and a kill by Anglemyer to capture the win 25-22.
UIndy clenched its third Great Lakes Valley Conference Championship with a 3-2 victory over No. 17 Lewis University in the GLVC conference tournament on Nov. 13.
Anglemyer led the team with 27 kills, her career’s highest. Binkerd also had a career record of 28 digs with 58 assists and three kills. Hefferan ended with 11 kills and 19 digs, and Crawford contributed 13 kills. Oldenberg finished with 24 digs, while Kerrigan had 16 digs.
After the Flyers claimed the first set at 25-18, UIndy fought back in the following set to win 25-23. The Flyers went on to win the third set 25-22, and the Greyhounds answered with a 25-18 win in the fourth set.
In the final match-determining set, UIndy and Lewis battled back-and-forth for championship points. Anglemyer and Hefferan finally sealed victory with one kill each, putting the set’s final score at 23-21.
Kerrigan said that the fifth set was a battle, especially after the 14th point when the Greyhounds countered the Flyers’ one-point lead to tie the game at 15 points.
“Fifth games are never easy. It is really anyone’s game at that point, and it comes down to who can make fewer errors,” Kerrigan said. “After point 14, it was really who could put two points together to make the match, and luckily we were able to do that.”
Head Coach Jody Rogers explained that the Lewis game was a rivalry match that came down to which team wanted to win more.
“It was just a test to [see] how hard the girls fought to [get] the win,” Rogers said. “They rose to the occasion.”
Rogers said the team played well together the entire weekend, but Anglemyer stepped up to lead the team in the finals against Lewis.
“[The finals] was the best match she’s played in her four years,” Rogers said.
Before conquering Lewis to win the conference title, UIndy defeated No. 16 Northern Kentucky University 3-1 on Saturday, Nov. 12, and Rockhurst University 3-0 on Friday, Nov. 11.
After a 25-21 victory in the first set, the Greyhounds gave up an early seven- point lead in the second set when the Norse tied the set at 18-18. UIndy and NKU battled in back-to-back play for the remainder of the set, with the Greyhounds finally finishing at 31-29. The Norse claimed the third set over the Greyhounds with a victory of 25-22.
In the fourth set, neither team was able to lead by more than a two-point margin until the Greyhounds built the lead to 16-13 and led the rest of the set to finish with a 25-20 victory.
Hefferan led the team to victory with 20 kills and 12 digs. Kerrigan added 15 kills, 10 digs, two aces and two blocks. Anglemyer and Crawford combined to record 14 blocks for the Greyhounds. Watkins contributed six kills and four blocks. Oldenberg finished with 23 digs, while Binkerd added 51 assists, seven digs and five kills.
In Friday’s quarterfinal match, the Greyhounds swept the Hawks with a final match score of 3-0.
UIndy started the first set with an early lead of 8-3. After numerous rallies, the Hawks cut the Greyhounds’ lead to 16-13. However, a missed serve by the Hawks gave UIndy the lead as well as the set victory of 25-16.
In the second set, the Greyhounds turned a one-point deficit into a 9-1 run. Kerrigan finished the set at 25-13.
The third and final set saw a lead of 11-7 before the Hawks closed the gap with a 3-0 run. But the combined efforts of Hefferan, Anglemyer and Crawford sealed the set and match victory for the Greyhounds.
