ST. PAUL, Minn.– Macalester volleyball hosted the Hamline University Pipers on Thursday, Sept. 24 for the Faculty/Staff Night at the Leonard Center in St. Paul, Minn. The Scots won in hard-fought four sets, 25-20, 25-23, 22-25 and 25-22.
Macalester started its first set trading points early, with a one-point lead at 6-5 early, with a kill from
Adonia Anene (North Hollywood, Calif./The Buckley School). The Scots put their foot on the gas, taking a 19-8 lead after going on a 13-3 run. The Scots were blazing with kills from first-year outside hitter
Maxine Holmes (San Francisco, Calif./Lick-Wilmerding), first-year outside hitter
Channing Smith (River Forest, Ill./Oak Park River Forest), first-year middle blocker
Kyle Speta (San Francisco, Calif./Lick-Wilmerding)
. Macalester closed out the set 25-20, holding off a late comeback from Hamline, with additional kills from sophomore middle blocker
Danielle Oji (Katy, Texas/Obra D. Tompkins) and first-year middle blocker
Siennah Calkins (Tomahawk, Wis./Tomahawk)
.
Set two was not the same story for the Scots, trailing early 12-5, despite kills from Oji, Smith and Anene. Macalester did not keep their head down, as they pushed through a grueling blow-for-blow battle, leading to a late 22-22 tie. The early seven-point deficit was shrunk to zero by kills from Anene, Smith, Holmes and Calkins. The energy for the Scots kept rolling, and after they tied the game, the brakes were cut, with a kill from Anene, and a final kill by Calkins, Mac won the set 25-23 in a dramatic 20-11 run to claim a 2-0 set lead.
Set three saw the Scots start on fire, with numerous kills coming from Anene, Smith, Oji, and Calkins early to give the Scots a 12-7 lead. The Pipers kept pushing, shrinking the gap 13-11 and eventually tied the game 18-18, despite kills from Smith, Holmes and Oji. Macalester was not immune to the pressure, with Hamline going on a 7-4 run, winning the set 25-22 and denying the Scots their straight-set sweep.
In the fourth set, the Scots traded kill for kill with the Pipers, resulting in a mid-set 12-12 tie, with kills from Calkins, Smith and Oji getting them there. The Scots kept pushing, but the Pipers did too, and after Hamline took a lead at 14-13, the game stayed within two points for the rest of the set, until Macalester finally closed the door on the Pipers with a kill from Anene ending the set 25-22. Smith had five kills in the final set, Oji had three, and first-year
Lydia Koshuta (Appleton, Wis./Appleton) logged seven assists.
The Scots were led in kills by Smith with 13, followed by Calkins with eight. Koshuta led the team with 17 assists, followed by senior setter
Hannah Morrow (Raleigh, N.C./Millbrook). Morrow also led the team with 16 digs.
Next for the Scots: Macalester (6-7) will continue their MIAC play by facing off against the College of St. Scholastica at 5:00 p.m. on Saturday, Sept. 26.
