Volleyball Picks Up Second Win of Season Over Albion

DELAWARE, OH. – Fans saw some tremendous volleyball matches take place on day two of the NCAC/MIAA Crossover Challenge on Saturday, Sept. 6, at Ohio Wesleyan University's Branch Rickey Arena.

Wittenberg women's volleyball team faced great competition in Hope College and Albion College, members of the Michigan Intercollegiate Athletic Association (MIAA), and matched up well with each of them, gaining a split in two close battles - one a five-set thriller vs. third-ranked Hope. 

After dropping the first two sets in close scores against Hope, Witt jumped ahead at 5-2, but was outscored by Hope 13-10 down the stretch to bring things to a 15-all tie. Key offensive attacks by Kaili Worcester (Powell, OH / Olentangy Liberty) and Alana Bartulovic (Cleveland, OH / Notre Dame Cathedral Latin) kept the Tigers in the game and nine ties later, allowed them to overcome the Flying Dutch to tally the third set win at 30-28. The Flying Dutch couldn't muster much offense in game four, and Witt quickly put them away 25-11 to even things at 2-2, forcing the tiebreaker game. However, Hope regained the momentum and took game five to seal the 3-2 win in scores of 25-21, 28-26, 28-30, 11-25, and 15-7, improving to 4-1 overall, only losing to Denison so far this season, which was during the crossover.

Worcester, who has been on fire for the Tigers this season, turned in an incredible match against Hope with a career-high 21 kills. She tallied 57 total attacks for a team-high 24 points, and added two service aces, two block assists, and 16 digs. Mary Sulfridge (South Charleston, OH / Southeastern) also turned in a great match against Hope with a career-high 52 assists.

In match two against Albion, Wittenberg came away the 3-1 victors in scores of 25-18, 18-25, 25-14, and 25-14, dealing the Britons their first loss of the season. Wittenberg improves to 2-4 on the season with the split.

Worcester and Sulfridge had a great weekend of volleyball. Worcester turned in a double-double in kills and digs, while Sulfridge had a double-double in assists and digs, in each of the three matches of the crossover.

In crossover competition, North Coast Athletic Conference (NCAC) teams Ohio Wesleyan lost to Calvin, Hope, and Albion, while Denison defeated Hope but fell to Albion and Calvin. 

Team Leaders Vs. Hope

• Four players, including Worcester, finished in double digits in kills. Bartulovic and Clare O'Malley (Avon, OH / St. Joseph's Academy) each had 13. and Sam Fincham (Springfield, OH / Kenton Ridge) tallied 11. O'Malley finished with 14 points while Bartulovic and Fincham each had 13.
• Sulfridge led the team in assists with 52. She also had three aces, two block assists, and 16 digs.
• Ally White (Harrison, OH / Harrison) had a team-high 30 digs.

Team Leaders Vs. Albion

• Worcester again led the team in kills with 12, O'Malley had nine, and Bartulovic had eight.
• Worcester led the team in aces with four, White had three, and Piper Ricketts (Morrow, OH / Little Miami) added two. 
• Sulfridge had a team-high 37 assists.
• White led the team in digs with 21, Worcester added 12, and Sulfridge had 11. 
• Olivia Follick (Vandalia, OH / Butler) and O'Malley led the team in blocks with four each. 

Team Comparison Vs. Hope

• Stats were very even in this one, with Wittenberg actually scoring more points 109-107.
• Wittenberg registered 68 kills on 189 total attacks for a .228 hitting percentage. The Tigers also turned in 66 assists, 11 service aces, 93 digs, and six total blocks. 
• Hope landed 56 kills on 189 total attacks for a hitting percentage of .189. The Flying Dutch also had 50 assists, nine service aces, 83 digs, and five blocks. 

Team Comparison Vs. Albion

• Wittenberg registered 44 kills on 142 total attacks for a .204 hitting percentage. The Tigers also turned in 42 assists, 13 service aces, 74 digs, and eight total blocks.
• Albion tallied 39 kills on 145 total attacks for a .131 hitting percentage. The Britons also turned in 36 assists, 71 digs, six blocks, and seven service aces.   

Up Next

Next up, the Tigers will be on the road again, this time at Mount St. Joseph on Tuesday, Sept. 9, for a 7 p.m. match.