SPRING ARBOR, Mich. – The Spring Arbor University women's volleyball team pushed No. 13 ranked Grace College to five sets before falling Wednesday night at the American 1 Credit Union Arena.
The Cougars won the opening set and forced a deciding fifth with a fourth-set victory, but Grace prevailed 22-25, 25-15, 25-16, 18-25, 16-14. Spring Arbor moved to 15-8 overall and 7-5 in the Crossroads League, while the Lancers improved to 23-3 overall and 11-1 in conference play.
After Grace took the second and third sets, Spring Arbor responded with its strongest offensive set of the night. The Cougars totaled 13 kills and hit .195 in the fourth, with Hinzman contributing six kills to help send the match to a fifth set.
SAU built a 10-6 lead in the deciding set and later earned two match points at 14-12 following an
Iyla Weeks kill. Grace answered with four consecutive points to close out the victory.
Keely Hinzman led SAU with 13 kills on a .321 hitting percentage and seven blocks, including two solo stops.
Isabelle Kirkendall finished with eight kills, Weeks added seven and
Natasha Bickel contributed six.
Lyla Tate provided five kills and two block assists.
Camy Wedge recorded a double-double with 21 assists and 13 digs.
Palmer Fortress led the defense with 20 digs, while
Gabby Bryja added 11 assists and seven digs.
Spring Arbor totaled 11 blocks and held Grace to a .094 hitting percentage. The Cougars hit .058, while Grace held an 87-71 advantage in digs.
Spring Arbor hosts Huntington University on Senior Day on Saturday, Oct. 17, at 1 p.m.
