ROMEOVILLE, Ill. – Victory is so sweet.
So sweet that second-seeded Hillsdale is in rarified air among the final 16 teams remaining in the NCAA Division II Volleyball Championship bracket following Friday’s semifinal victory over No. 6 Michigan Tech, 3-1 (25-19, 22-25, 25-13, 30-28).
Freshman middle blocker Megan Kolp walloped the final point, kill No. 11 for her, of the match in a lengthy 30-28 set victory to seal Hillsdale’s second straight national tournament win.
The Chargers will be playing for the Midwest Region title vs. No. 5 Rockhurst on Saturday after No. 1 Lewis went down in straight sets.
But Michigan Tech was riding the same type of high after dispatching of No. 3 seed Missouri-St. Louis to start out quarterfinal action.
Hillsdale won the first set but the Huskies countered in the second game to even things up. The Chargers dominated the third set and had to dig a little deep for something extra to finish off the No. 3 seed from the GLIAC.
The Huskies’ 1-2 tandem of Laura De Marchi and Oilvia Ghormley are notoriously tough to stop, but the Chargers had an answer with 12.5 blocks up front and a .177 hitting percentage against.
Great Midwest Player of the Year Allyssa Van Wienen was a terror up front again with 12 kills and 11 blocks (3 solo, 8 assisted). Karoline Shelton had an impressive double-double with 17 kills and 21 digs and Madie Schider had a team-leading 22 digs.
Juniro setter Lindsey Mertz had some staggering passing totals again with 52 assists to help lead the Hillsdale offense. Hillsdale was able to record a .260 hitting percentage.
The Chargers advanced to the semifinals after defeating No. 7 UIndy in the opening round on Thursday in five sets.
Hillsdale is now 28-3 overall, officially becoming the first team in Great Midwest history to advance into the Sweet 16 round of the volleyball tournament bracket.
The Chargers will now face No. 5 Rockhurst on Saturday at 8 p.m. ET at Lewis’ Neil Carey Arena. The winner would advance to Denver, Colo., for the final eight at the Auraria Events Center.