Grace handles Foresters in straight sets

WINONA LAKE, Ind. – Grace’s volleyball team was hitting on all cylinders in a 3-0 win over Huntington on Friday.

The Lady Lancers hit at a .229 percentage offensively, and Grace’s defense held the Foresters to a .039 clip in an efficient evening.

With the win, Grace moves into a tie for third place in the Crossroads League and gains a game of separation between themselves and the Foresters (8-8, 3-3 CL).

The Lady Lancers (9-5, 4-2 CL) played with energy in front of a lively crowd at the MOCC, led by a student section of Grace’s baseball team.

Grace’s energy forced Huntington to call both timeouts while trailing 19-12. The Foresters were unable to slow Grace’s momentum; Kari Feddema’s kill ended the set 25-17 for Grace.

Caylie Teel had four kills in the first set to lead all players. Defensively, Grace forced Huntington into 11 errors in the game.

In the second set, a 6-0 run early in the set gave Grace the lead for good. Teel had an ace and a kill in the run, and Feddema and Alexa Hill also added a kill. Grace went onto win 25-21 to take a commanding lead in the match.

Huntington pulled ahead early in the third set with a 7-3 lead. But the Lady Lancers used a 9-3 spurt to climb ahead and never trailed again. As a team, Grace had only three errors in the set compared to 11 for Huntington.

Feddema was ruthlessly efficient. The senior had 10 kills on just 19 swings for a .526 percentage. She was fed early and often by Hill who finished with 29 assists and eight digs.

Marta Bleed added eight kills, Teel amassed 7 kills, 11 digs and 1 solo block, and Sierra Smith chipped in six kills and three block assists.

Defensively, Grace covered the court well all match. Sara Miller had a team-high 14 digs, Emily Sharp added nine digs, and Gina Novotny tallied eight.

The Lady Lancers wrap up a four-game homestand on Wednesday. Grace hosts Goshen at 7 p.m. at the Manahan Orthopaedic Capital Center.