NORTH MANCHESTER, Ind. – The Earlham College volleyball team split a tri-match at Manchester University on Saturday, headlined by a 5-set win over the Spartans. The Quakers won their second straight Heartland Collegiate Athletic Conference battle after toppling Hanover College last week.
The Quakers improved to 9-10 (2-1 HCAC).
GAME ONE: EARLHAM 3 MANCHESTER 2 (20-15, 25-19, 25-22, 24-26, 15-10)
A trio of Quakers reached double-digit kills in the matchup. Anniyah Harrington led all scorers with 17 kills and a .308 hitting percentage.
Liv Kyrk posted an efficient 15 kills to just two errors and had a game-high .520 percentage.
Maria Young found the Spartan floor 13 times and added three assists and five digs.
Erin Wagner tallied 43 assists and a team-high two aces on the afternoon.
Jen Shamel led the back court with 19 digs.
The Quakers recovered from a 24-16 deficit with a four-point run in the first set before the Spartans put an end to the comeback with a kill. The first set was the only frame that Manchester hit at a higher percentage than the Quakers.
Earlham came out firing in set two with an early 6-3 run. A 9-3 run in the middle of the set lifted the visiting squad to a 17-12 lead, before a four-point run gave Earlham a 23-16 lead.
The third set was the worst offensive showing from both teams. The squads combined for a 0 hitting percentage with 18 kills and 18 errors all together. Earlham cruised out to an early 10-4 lead before Manchester scored a 6-1 run to trail 11-10. The Spartans scored another 6-1 run before Ealrham kicked back into gear and outscored the hosts 9-5 in the remainder of the set.
The Quakers led all of the fourth set until a 5-1 run from Manchester put the Spartans up 17-16. Earlham stayed composed and kept up the offensive pressure to lead 24-22 before Manchester scored four straight points to win the set.
After a close battle in the beginning of the deciding set, the Quakers scored a four-point run with serves from
Meg Kobman to win the set. Kobman delivered the final blow with an ace to close out the game.
GAME TWO: EARLHAM 1 HUNTINGTON 3 (12-25, 25-23, 14-25, 18-25)
Young and
Jasmyn Meeker led the second game with seven kills each. Wagner teamed up with freshman
Ava Walters to both record nine assists. Shamel controlled the back line with 21 digs.
The Quakers struggled offensively in set one with a negative hitting percentage as a team. Meanwhile, Huntington scored 11 kills with only one error to control the frame.
Earlham bounced back in set two with eight kills and two errors as a team. The Foresters led 21-18 before a 7-2 Quaker run sealed the set.
The Foresters had their best offensive set in the third frame with 14 kills and a .324 hitting percentage, while the Quakers were negative with seven errors. Huntington scored a 10-point run to end the set after leading 15-14.
The Quakers struggled with errors again in set four with eight of them on nine kills.
Earlham will be back in action on Wednesday at Transylvania University. The Pioneers currently lead the HCAC standings with a 3-0 record after defeating Ealrham in the HCAC Championship game last season. First serve is slated for 7 pm in Lexington, Ky.
