VOLLEYBALL

The HU volleyball team wrapped up their time in Michigan by dropping a pair of matches on day two of the Siena Heights Labor Day Tournament. The Foresters played stride for stride with one of the nation’s best teams before conceding to #RV Campbellsville, after which they fell victim to the host Saints.

Eight matches into the season, the Foresters have already found themselves in a trio of five-set thrillers, but unfortunately have come up short each time, including today’s battle with Campbellsville, 25-21, 20-25, 25-17, 20-25, 15-12.

Brandy Michie left an indelible mark on the contest with the best performance of her Forester career. The sophomore outside hitter dominated play with a career- and match-best 20 kills and .267 hitting percentage.

“Brandy was a monster,” claimed Shondell. “There were times they had no idea how to defend her.”

Other contributors included Lindsay Ingenito and Tailor Schultheis with 11 and ten kills, respectively. Jenna Tacosik directed traffic by dishing out 49 assists. The sophomore setter also collected 12 digs for her second straight double double.

“Taco was really good in this one,” said Shondell. “She gave our hitters solo blocks consistently and we took advantage.”

Ariene Butler took charge of the backline with 24 digs.

While the Tigers (7-1) finished with eight fewer kills than HU, they made up for it behind the end line by committing just five service errors while registering 16 aces. The Foresters finished with seven aces while posting nine service errors.

After their grueling match with Campbellsville, Shondell’s crew had a short break before taking on Siena Heights and it seemed to take its toll.

“Any time you’re forced to roll from a five-set marathon like the one we had with Campbellsville into another match thirty minutes later, it is going to be a challenge,” noted Shondell.

“But I thought we maintained our composure really well throughout the match and battled the whole way through.”

After taking the first set, 25-18, the Foresters lost the next two in “overtime” (27-25, 30-28) before the Saints wrapped things up in the fourth set, 25-19.

Michie was again unstoppable by following up with another 20-kill match – this time upping her hitting efficiency to .349.

“Brandy, again, was a stud,” said Shondell. “When she gets going, sometimes it takes train to stop her.”

Huntington took a page out of Campbellsville’s book by logging 15 aces, four by Jo Rammel, to SHU’s six. Unfortunately, the downside was Huntington’s 11 service errors that proved costly.

“We served really aggressive and while it helped us a lot,” said Shondell. “It also cost us with a few untimely service errors.”

Tacosik organized the offense with 33 assists. Her consistency and leadership were rewarded by being named to the All-Tournament Team. This is her second designation of the season as she was also voted to the Forester Invitational All-Tourney Team.

Butler finished with 21 digs while Lanie McClanahan and Nicole Flickinger added 15 and 13, respectively.

The Foresters (3-6) are slated to host Taylor September 5 at 7:00 p.m.