GRAND RAPIDS, Mich. – The Alma College volleyball program came out of the gate on fire in the final two sets, taking six-point leads within the first ten points in both, however, the Scots could not hold off the 13th-ranked Calvin Knights for the entirety of the match, falling in straight sets.
The Basics:
- Records
- Alma (7-17, 1-6 Michigan)
- #13 Calvin (22-3, 7-0 Michigan)
- Series History
- Knights Lead 55-10 (15.4%)
- Winning Streak
- Knights (W42) / Scots' Last Win: September 24, 2005 (3-2 / Set Scores Unknown)
How It Happened:
CU opened the evening by going up 9-3 over the first dozen points, using six unanswered after the Scots and Knights were even at three apiece. The home side would then tack on four more compared to Alma's one, including back-to-back service aces, to force a timeout by Coach Good at 13-4. Calvin finished on a 12-7 run to claim the first set, 25-11.
Rudy Maynard decided to put the momentum squarely into her hands by serving up three straight aces to open the second set as the visitors dressed in black tops jumped out to an early 7-1 advantage. The 13th-ranked Knights proved why they are considered national championship contenders by charging all the way back to knot the proceedings at 12. The Scots would not go away lightly however, going toe-to-toe with Calvin over the next 13 points and making CU's Head Coach sweat enough to call a TO after cutting a 19-14 deficit down to one, 19-18. The regrouping tactic worked however as the homestanding Knights protected their castle henceforth to earn a 25-21 triumph.
Alma got off to a fast start for the second straight set, claiming six of the first seven and seven-of-nine points (7-2), thanks in large part to some excellent serving by
Grace Steiner (two aces). A 5-0 run for Calvin would eventually tie things back up at ten each and the Knights tacked on an additional 9-5 run to make it 19-15, forcing an Alma timeout. CU wrapped the match up from there, winning 25-17 and registering a sweep.
Scots' Top Performers:
Nevea Bush and
Emily Carling fronted the offense with six (2.00 p/s) and five (1.67 p/s) kills, respectively.
Maynard (3, 1.00 p/s) and Steiner (2, 0.67 p/s) combined to collect all five of the service aces as the former had a team-best nine assists (3.00 p/s) while the latter recorded a half-dozen digs (2.00 p/s).
Grace Droste did a solid job multi-tasking, putting together the second-most assists (8, 2.67 p/s) and digs (6, 2.00 p/s) whereas
Maren DeBeau led the defense via seven digs (2.33 p/s).
Next:
The Maroon and Teal conclude the regular season on Saturday at 1 p.m. inside
Art Smith Arena vs. (RV) Hope.
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#GoScots
