By: Illinois College had its MWC record evened at 2-2 after a three-set road loss on Friday night.
Box Score RIPON, Wis. – A hectic road weekend got off to a rough start for the Illinois College volleyball team on Friday night as the Lady Blues were swept by Ripon College. The Red Hawks won the sets 25-11, 25-17, 25-14.
Holly Crocher anchored the IC attack with eight kills in the match, but the team ended the night with a negative hitting percentage to help the Ripon cause. IC falls to 5-11 (2-2 MWC) on the season.
The tone was set early on, with Ripon turning a 13-10 lead in the first set into a 25-11 win by reeling off 10 straight points. A Red Hawk attack error late in the proceedings was the only break in the long stretch.
In the second set, Illinois College hung around through the midway point before Ripon began to pull away. The Lady Blues led by as many as three points after a block from
Courtney Louveau and
Erin Washington, followed by a Louveau kill, but Ripon rallied to knot the score at 10-10. The score see-sawed to 13-13 until the Red Hawks scored six straight to take an 18-13 advantage that IC couldn't recover from.
The Lady Blues once again held the lead early in the third set before Ripon went on another long tear. A block from Washington and
Lisa Lowry and a Red Hawk attack error allowed Illinois College to claim a 5-3 lead. From there, Ripon scored 11 of the next 12 points to go ahead, 14-6, and cruise the rest of the way.
Washington ended the match with four kills and four block assists for IC. Lowry had a team-high 11 assists and
Maurissa Moulton led the defense with nine digs.
The Lady Blues will have no choice but to regroup quickly, returning to the court tomorrow morning for an 11 a.m. match with Carroll University in Waukesha, Wis.
