The Alma Volleyball team hosted Hope College Friday night in a big MIAA tilt between the Scots and the Flying Dutch at the Art Smith Arena. Alma lost to Hope 3-1 (29-27, 12-25, 21-25, 19-25), falling to 9-3 in the league and 14-10 overall. The Flying Dutch won their 13 consecutive match and are now 20-4 in 2010, and 12-1 in the MIAA.

"It was a great effort by us tonight and I am extremely proud of how we competed," said Alma Head Coach Cheyenne Luzynski. "We have raised the bar here and I thought that except for the second game, we played with them point by point. In the end, an experienced Hope team beat a still-developing Scots squad. We are still in a good position and we need to go down to Saint Mary's tomorrow and try to get a win."

The host Scots won a thrilling back and forth first game by a margin of 29-27 and a very vocal crowd enjoyed every minute. It was only the second game the visitors have lost in their winning streak. Hope came out strong in the second game and tied the match at 1-1 with a 25-12 win.

The third game was close throughout and was tied at 20-20 at one point, before the Dutch prevailed by a mark of 25-21. Hope closed out the match in the fourth game, as the Scots fought hard and it was tight fight, but the Dutch finished with a 25-19 decision, to earn the match victory.

Sr. S Hannah Hewitt (Harbor Springs, MI/Harbor Light Christian) led Alma with 40 assists and 17 digs, while Fr. OH Kelly Maise (Northville, MI/Northville) contributed 16 digs for the home team. Maise also had a team-high in kills with 12, and Fr. MH Lea Klooster (Jenison, MI/Jenison) was next with 11 kills.

The Scots hit the road on Saturday, as they travel down to Indiana to take on MIAA rival Saint Mary's, beginning at 3:00 p.m.