SPRING ARBOR, Mich. – The Spring Arbor University women's volleyball team celebrated Senior Day with a 3-0 victory over Huntington University on Saturday afternoon at the American 1 Credit Union Arena.
The Cougars won 25-21, 25-21, 26-24 to improve to 16-8 overall and 8-5 in the Crossroads League. Huntington fell to 11-16 overall and 4-9 in conference play.
Before the match, Spring Arbor recognized seniors Erica Walters,
Isabelle Kirkendall,
Camy Wedge,
Keely Hinzman,
Julia Mitchell and
Natasha Bickel.
Iyla Weeks led the Cougars with 11 kills and just one attack error on 17 attempts for a .588 hitting percentage. Hinzman added nine kills, Bickel finished with seven and Kirkendall contributed six.
Wedge handed out 20 assists and served two aces, while
Gabby Bryja added 15 assists.
Palmer Fortress led SAU with 15 digs.
Spring Arbor took the opening two sets before overcoming a seven-point deficit in the third to complete the sweep. Huntington led 9-2 early in the final set, but the Cougars worked back into contention and eventually took an 18-17 lead.
The Foresters regained control and earned two set points at 24-22. SAU answered with four consecutive points, getting a kill from Hinzman, a Huntington attack error and a Bickel kill before Hinzman finished the match with a service ace.
The Cougars hit .214 with 42 kills while holding Huntington to a .111 hitting percentage. Wedge, Hinzman and Weeks each served two of SAU's eight aces.
Hinzman's performance brought her career kill total to 891, moving her into fifth in SAU's record book covering the 2008–present scoring era. Kirkendall also moved into the career top 10 with 799 kills during her time at Spring Arbor.
The Cougars travel to Taylor University on Wednesday, Oct. 21, for a 7 p.m. match in Upland, Indiana.
