The Collegian

Issue date: 9/11/08 Section: Sports

The Hillsdale College volleyball team is excited about this weekend. They are about to find out if the difficult non-conference games they have been playing have prepared them for more familiar conference foes. Starting Friday at 7 p.m., there will be no easy wins.

"I am really looking forward to the game this Friday," senior captain Stephanie Booms said. "It's the first conference match at home against Ashland [University], one of our biggest rivals in the South. It will be a good match. We are just excited to play. Hopefully we can play consistently and give them our best shot."

In 2006 Ashland ended the Chargers' chance at perfection beating them in the GLIAC Tournament and later ended their season when they met during regional semi-finals.

The team finished with a record of 27-2 for the 2006 season.

Although Hillsdale managed to defeat Ashland in 2007, head coach Chris Gravel said this does not take away from the importance of this matchup. This time a different streak is on the line. The Chargers have won their last 26 regular-season games at home and are hoping to build momentum as they begin their conference schedule.

Davenport University was last to fall victim to the Chargers' home dominance. They were defeated in three straight sets by significant margins Tuesday night, 25-12, 25-13 and 25-10. The match took just over an hour to complete. However Gravel was able to identify one weak spot in their performance.

"In game one, we were up to a 6-1 lead and then we let them come back to tie at 6-6," Gravel said Tuesday. "That's exactly what we have been working against. After that, we never gave up more than two points in a row. That was what we wanted coming into tonight. Our runs were long, their runs were short."

Freshmen Clara Leutheuser and Ashlee Crowder combined for nine of the team's ten blocks in the match. They played extremely well together, Booms said, and were both awarded with All-Tournament Team selections last weekend at the TownPlace Suites Classic Tournament at the University of Findlay in Ohio. On a roster loaded with talented veteran players, it can be hard for freshmen to get attention. If they keep up their current level of play, it will be impossible to ignore them.

"I've been really impressed with everyone, but Clara and Ashlee have been playing especially well," Booms said. "Clara has been getting up for some big blocks, and Ashlee can really put the ball down. It's nice to have them on the team this year."

Everyone got playing time at the Findlay Tournament, as several different lineups were used.

The team finished with a 3-1 record after losing to California (Pa.) in four sets on Friday. Hillsdale did manage to avenge a loss from last season by defeating Wheeling-Jesuit University in straight sets.

Now sporting an 8-2 record, the team has enough experience to be confident coming into the Ashland match. The only potential problem is having too many good players.

"We don't have a set starting lineup," Gravel said. "Part of it has to do with the other team, and part of it just has to do with what players are hot. I will have a team on the bench that might be better than the opposing team on the floor on any given day.

"It's a very difficult job for me this year with that kind of depth, but it's also a good problem to have."

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