NCAA Championship Bracket
Box Score
BIG RAPIDS, Mich. - For the second consecutive time, Hillsdale has earned the right to compete for a regional title following Friday’s upset over Michigan Tech in the second round of the NCAA Division II Volleyball Championship on Friday.
The third-seeded Chargers edged the No. 2 seeded Huskies by a 3-2 final that went down to the wire by set scores of 26-28, 27-25, 22-25, 25-16 and 15-11.
The five-time Great Midwest Athletic Conference champion Chargers won their second postseason matchup in a row after defeating No. 6 Grand Valley State in Thursday’s quarterfinal action.
Hillsdale had to focus on a tough opponent that had its number most recently at the Midwest Region Crossover Tournament as Michigan Tech won 3-0. The Chargers did their homework and avenged the regular season defeat.
Later in the evening, the Chargers discovered they would be playing region host and No. 1 seed Ferris State for the regional title on Saturday in Jim Wink Arena. The Bulldogs eliminated No. 5 seed Missouri-St. Louis from the Great Lakes Valley Conference.
So that will make three consecutive opponents for the Chargers in the NCAA Championship bracket from the Great Lakes Intercollegiate Athletic Conference (GLIAC). Hillsdale has been in this position before after making the region final in 2019 against Rockhurst.
This time around, the Chargers would like to flip the outcome with advancement into the Elite Eight (NCAA quarterfinals) and deliver the conference’s first region championship in the sport of volleyball.
The Chargers and Huskies slugged it out on the front lines and Hillsdale had the edge in hitting percentage, .192 to .124. Senior outside hitter Maddie Clark led Hillsdale with 15 kiils with OH Karoline Shelton and MB Allyssa Van Wienen putting down 14 each.
Their efforts helped offset the performances from MT’s respective all-conference honorees as Olivia Ghormley led all players with 20 kills.
There wasn’t much statistical separation from the two nationally-ranked programs. Hillsdale had two more assists and just one more dig as each team totaled over 100. Shelton had a terrific defensive effort with 26 digs and senior Madie Schider produced 19 more. Shelton also recorded four blocks while all-region setter Lindsey Mertz racked up 52 assists.
Hillsdale improved to 29-4 and carry a nine-match win streak into the regional final against Ferris State, which brings in a 22-match win streak and is 27-4 overall. The Bulldogs faced Hillsdale one time in the 2021 regular season in late October with Ferris State taking a sweep, although no set was decided by more than four points, inside the Chargers’ Dawn Tibbetts Potter Arena.
Hillsdale and Ferris State will compete at 5 p.m. ET. The advancing NCAA Championship quarterfinalists will be reseeded by the national committee into the original bracket and travel to Tampa, Fla., for the remainder of the tournament on Dec. 9-11.