VOLLEYBALL

The HU volleyball team (4-10, 1-5) came out on fire Friday night against Grace College to jump out to an early 5-0 lead before the Lancers clawed back in it and then used that momentum to send their visitors home in three sets, 25-17, 25-18, 25-18.

To date, four of the Foresters’ six conference matches have been on the road and as HU can attest, winning on the road in this league is never easy. Shondell’s crew is 1-1 in Crossroads League action when playing in the friendly confines of Platt Arena but 0-4 when on the road.

Despite the final outcome, Shondell remains optimistic about his team’s play and the direction they’re headed. “In all reality, we got better tonight.

“Winning on the road in our conference is a difficult task. We played some good volleyball, Grace played more of it.”

Offense for the Foresters was by committee with Brandy Michie leading the way with seven of her team’s 33 kills. Lanie McClanahan added six while Jenna Tacosik and Lauren Cresse each posted five. Tacosik also handed out 24 assists.

HU had 20 attacking errors in the match and hit .140 on the night while Grace committed just nine hitting errors and finished with a hitting percentage of .363.

Defensive was also a team effort for the Foresters. Ariene Butler recorded a team-best nine digs as one of five Foresters to tally at least five digs. Huntington collected four blocks, two from Cresse.

“A young team and a road-heavy start to our conference schedule make for a start we didn’t expect, but we have a ton of season left and I think you’re going to see a lot of growth down the stretch,” said Shondell.

The Foresters are back on the road Wednesday to face Bethel at 7:00 p.m.