Hawks Sweep Homecoming Tri-Match Against Maryville And Wesleyan

MONTGOMERY, Ala.- Taking the court in Roland Arena for the second time in as many days, Huntingdon Volleyball bounced back from their losses to Mary-Hardin Baylor, sweeping their home Collegiate Conference of the South tri-match against Maryville and Wesleyan. 

Match one v. Maryville

Maryville, currently atop the CCS standings, flew out of the gates en route to a 25-20 opening set victory. Posting 14 kills to just 7 for Huntingdon, the Scots efficiency at the net served as the difference. The Hawks drew within three points at different times in the set, but boosted by a 6-1 opening run, Maryville managed to claim the 1-0 lead. 

Not to be outdone however, the Hawks answered with a resounding 25-13 set two victory. Led by Morgan Suggs and Lily VanDyke, the Hawks picked up a match-high 13 kills in the set, holding Maryville to just 5 as they established their lead. Utilizing a 10-2 run to open the set, the Hawks led by double-digits through the majority of the set, including a high of 13, 23-10, coming down the stretch. A Kinsley Martin kill closed out the set and evened the match at 1-1. 

The Hawks captured their momentum heading into the third set, finding a second wind to claim a 26-24 victory that put them ahead 2-1. With both teams recording an equal number of 8 kills, the two squads traded blows throughut the duration of the set. Huntingdon fell behind 23-20 following an error from VanDyke, but recovered nicely, making the most of two Scots errors with consecutive kills courtesy of Suggs and Aly Harris en route to the lead. 

In the fourth set, the Hawks caught fire, holding the Scots to a -0.065 hitting percentage en route to a 25-10 match-clinching set victory. Huntingdon saw their highest efficiency at the net when it mattered most, securing 11 kills to go with just 2 errors as they pulled away down the stretch. Led by VanDyke, Suggs, and A'Kirra McElveen, the Hawks captured an 8-1 lead, and never relinquished their advantage, closing things out with a 4-0 run to topple the conference front runner. 

Hawk Top Performers

• #6 Lily VanDyke- 8 kills, 6 digs
• #28 Morgan Suggs- 12 kills, 11 digs
• #8 Kinsley Martin- 5 kills, 14 digs
• #10 A'Kirra McElveen- 6 kills, 2 digs

Match two v. Wesleyan

Rolling after their 3-1 victory over Maryville, the Hawks downed Wesleyan in three sets, limiting the Wolves to single digit scoring numbers in the opening two sets. The points were spread throughout Huntingdon's roster, but A'Kirra McElveen continued to excell, leading the team with 9 points. Huntingdon's defensive effort controlled the pace of the game, as Wesleyan picked up just 11 kills for the match, and only three through the opening two sets. The Hawks highest rate of offensive efficiency came in the final set, where Taylor Stewart, Jessie Eunice, and Sara Cochran led the Hawks to 14 kills, picking up just 5 errors on the way. 

With their two victories this afternoon, the Hawks move to 11-9 overall and 3-2 in conference matches, setting them fifth in the CCS standings coming down the stretch. They'll look to build off of today's performance on Tuesday, October 7th as they host Belhaven University. Matchtime is set for 6:30 PM CT.