WOMEN’S VOLLEYBALL

The Huntington University women’s volleyball team took care of business Monday night, sweeping Manchester University in a non-conference matchup and leading the way statistically in every major category.

The Foresters earned the victory by scores of 26-24, 25-16, and 25-10, using an efficient offense and steady defense to secure the straight-set win.

Manchester challenged Huntington throughout the opening set and held a 24-23 lead late. The Foresters responded with three straight points, including back-to-back kills from Maggie Hollon, to claim a 26-24 victory and take the early advantage.

Huntington carried that momentum into the second set, gradually creating separation before earning a 25-16 win. The Foresters then put together their strongest set of the night in the third, limiting Manchester to just 10 points while completing the sweep.

The Foresters finished the match with 43 kills and a .322 attacking percentage while holding the Spartans to a .090 clip. Huntington also led in assists (35-24), digs (43-31), aces (7-4), and total blocks (6.0-4.0).

Hollon paced the attack with 14 kills and a .333 hitting percentage. The sophomore extended her streak to 15 consecutive matches with double-digit kills while surpassing the 300-kill mark for the season. Hollon now owns 314 kills through 19 matches, already eclipsing the 311 kills she totaled in 34 matches last season. She currently ranks third in the NAIA with 4.69 kills per set and second nationally in total kills.

Trevyn Terry added 11 kills while hitting an impressive .636 with only two errors on 11 swings. Liz Blackburn contributed four kills, while Allie Boyer added three kills and hit .714.

Lauren Ross directed the offense with 29 assists, three service aces, and three kills. Her efforts helped Huntington produce 35 assists on 43 kills. Kennedy Urban chipped in four assists and a service ace.

The Foresters were also sharp from the service line, totaling seven aces while committing just two service errors. Ross led the way with three aces, while Urban, Hollon, Johnson, and Boyer each added one.

Defensively, Huntington recorded 43 digs and six total blocks. Jadyn Samson led the team with five digs, while Terry contributed a team-high two total blocks as the Foresters limited Manchester’s attack throughout the evening.

“Going into tonight’s match, we knew we wanted to utilize it as part of our training for our conference match on Wednesday.” said coach Kelsey Herber. “I was proud of how our girls not only won the match, but that we played well. We’ve been working on our blocking discipline, and I thought that looked great tonight. We also served aggressively and had a killer instinct offensively.”

The win comes against a Manchester program that will soon join Huntington as a member of the Crossroads League. For now, however, the non-conference matchup provided the Foresters a chance to build confidence and momentum as conference play moves forward.

The Foresters will return to Platt Arena on Wednesday to resume Crossroads League play when they host Saint Francis at 7:00 p.m. Huntington will look to build on Monday’s sweep and carry that momentum into a challenging conference matchup.