Valpo U Volleyball Closes Weekend with Sweep of Tarleton State

Volleyball Closes Weekend with Sweep of Tarleton State

The Valpo volleyball team closed out its time at the St. Thomas Invitational in St. Paul, Minn. on Saturday afternoon with an efficient performance on the attack to sweep Tarleton State, 3-0 (25-14, 25-22, 25-22). Late in the third set, junior Emma Hickey (Granger, Ind./Penn) registered the 1,500^th dig of her collegiate career, reaching the mark faster than any player in Valpo and MVC history.

How It Happened

–          The Beacons were especially proficient on the attack in the opening set, rolling to the win behind a .472 hitting percentage, as they tallied 18 kills against just one attack error on 36 swings.

–          Valpo never trailed in the first set, scoring the first four points, including back-to-back kills from junior Sam Warren (Kentland, Ind./South Newton). The key run came with the Beacons leading 8-6, as they went on an 8-1 spurt — featuring two kills by senior Elise Swistek (LaPorte, Ind./New Prairie) and two blocks from junior Maddie Moan (Woodstock, Ill./Woodstock [Milwaukee]) — and never looked back in claiming the opener.

–          The start of set two was the antithesis of the open of set one, as Tarleton State scored five of the first six points. Valpo kept the deficit from surpassing four points, hanging around until the late stages of the set.

–          Finally, trailing 21-19, the Beacons unleashed the critical spurt. It started with a kill from freshman Kadence Brumitt (Niles, Mich./Brandywine), and back-to-back Texans errors gave Valpo a 22-21 lead. Freshman Mia Liberti (Chicago, Ill./De La Salle Institute) delivered consecutive service aces to set up set point for Valpo, and on its second chance, freshman Ava Helming (Johnston, Iowa/Johnston) put away a kill to give the Beacons a 2-0 lead in the match.

–          Valpo scored five of the first seven points in the third set and never trailed, but Tarleton State didn’t make it easy for the Beacons. The lead reached an apex of six points at 19-13 before the Texans scored seven of the next 10 to close to within 22-20.

–          Back-to-back kills gave Valpo match point at 24-20, but TSU held off two match point attempts. Finally, on their third effort, the Beacons finished off the sweep thanks to a kill from freshman Jessica Pickett (Carmel, Ind./Carmel).

Inside the Match

–          Valpo closed the weekend with a sweep for the second straight weekend. The Beacons also posted a 2-1 weekend record for the second straight weekend.

–          Hickey racked up a match-best 19 digs, with her final dig of the match pushing her to 1,500 career digs. It took the junior just 72 matches to reach the mark.

–          Hickey surpassed Illinois State’s Courtney Pence, who reached the mark in 74 matches, as the fastest player in the MVC history to 1,500 career digs. Hickey also bettered Rylee Cookerly and Taylor Root in Valpo’s record books, as both Cookerly and Root hit the mark in 76 matches.

–          Valpo hit at a .349 clip for the match, putting down 49 kills on 106 swings with just 12 attack errors. It was the program’s best single-match hitting percentage since hitting .356 Sept. 9, 2022 in a win over Morgan State.

–          The Beacons’ .472 hitting percentage in set one was their best single-set effort since hitting .483 in set two against ULM Aug. 26, 2023.

–          Swistek led the way on the attack with perhaps the finest offensive match of her career. The senior reached double figures in kills for the 30^th time in her career with a match-high 15 kills, and did so on a career-best .500 hitting percentage. Defensively, the senior also chipped in nine digs — seven of which were converted into kills — and three blocks.

–          Swistek was the only Beacon to reach double figures in kills as Valpo’s setters spread the wealth on the attack. Brumitt and Helming tied for the second-most kills on the team with seven each.

–          Sophomore Mara Thomas (Bogart, Ga./Athens Academy) handed out a match-high 23 assists, while junior Addy Kois (Osceola, Ind./Penn) tallied 18 assists.

–          After playing in just one set over the season’s first five matches, Liberti showcased her serving prowess on Saturday, delivering four service aces on just 11 total serves.

Next Up

Valpo (4-2) comes home to host the Popcorn Classic next Friday and Saturday, Sept. 13-14. The two-day, six-match event features Cornell, Purdue Fort Wayne and Miami (Ohio) in addition to the Beacons.