OBERLIN, Ohio – The Oberlin College volleyball team rattled off its second straight NCAC victory in less than 24 hours, dropping the College of Wooster, (25-23, 25-17, 25-21), in straight sets, before completing a Senior Day sweep with a four-set victory over Earlham College (25-15, 23-25, 25-13, 25-10).
Oberlin sent down 39 kills and dropped in eight aces in the win, hitting .193 as a team against the Fighting Scots.
Last night's standout
Jillian Hostetler picked up right where she left off, leading the way with 11 kills, while
Ave Spencer added nine.
Dana Thomas also hammered home seven from her middle position.
In the opening set Oberlin held a 16-11 lead but the Scots came charging back to take a 23-22 advantage of their own. However, the Yeowomen would not be denied the opening game as a kill from Thomas and ace from Spencer left Oberlin one point shy of taking the opening set. The eventual point would come on an attack error by Savannah Moore.
Like the first set, Oberlin would again open up a big lead in the second with a 14-6 cushion in hand. However, this time Yeowomen fans could breathe a little easier as the Scots never really threatened as Oberlin cruised to an easy eight-point win.
Looking for the sweep, the Yeowomen were clinging to the slimmest of margins at 14-13, but a 4-0 spurt would ease the pressure some. The Scots wouldn't go down without a fight, getting back within three on multiple occasions, but the Yeowomen would ultimately finish the job on a kill from Hostetler.
Meredith Leung continued to her strong play, recording 32 assists and 10 digs, while
Molly Powers added 15 digs and two aces.
In the second match of the afternoon, the Yeowomen took down the Quakers concluding the Senior Day festivities and secure the sweep.
It was all Oberlin in the first set as they dominated the lid lifter, 25-15. After easily taking set one, the Yeowomen got complacent and surrendered the second, 23-25.
However, the loss in the second catapulted the Yeowomen's momentum and they came back strong in the later games. Set three went to Oberlin 25-13, before they closed out the Quakers with a convincing win in the fourth, 25-10.
The offensive pressure from the Yeowomen was led by the efforts of Thomas and Spencer, who earned ten kills each. As a unit, the Oberlin ladies hit .240 against the Quakers, led by Thomas who closed out the day with a hitting percentage of .364.
Thomas also recorded two block assists, helping the Yeowomen to five total blocks against Earlham.
Leung and Powers were busy once again against the Quakers. Leung was the jumping off point for the Oberlin offense finishing with a game-high 34 assists. Leung also led the Yeowomen from the back line, striping a match-best four aces. First-year
Sara Chang also got involved with four assists.
Powers closed out the day with a team-high 21 digs against the Quakers, while tallying two assists and three service aces.
The pair of Senior Day victories launch the Yeowomen to 6-7 overall and undefeated at 2-0 in the North Coast Athletic Conference.
Oberlin volleyball returns to the court on Wednesday, September 30 when they host the Hiram College Terriers. Action from inside Philips Gymnasium is slated for 7 p.m.
