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Box Score 2 Bluffton, Ohio – The Transylvania volleyball team picked up a pair of wins on Saturday afternoon, winning its conference opener in a four-set victory over the Bluffton University Beavers, and followed the triumph with a three-set sweep of the Trine University Thunder at the Sommer Center.
Transylvania lengthened its winning streak to four matches after Saturday's victories, moving to 11-9 on the season and 1-0 in Heartland Collegiate Athletic Conference play. The Beavers started off their conference tally at 0-1 in conference play.
Behind a match-high 17 kills from Cate Scheper and 13 kills by Suzanne Klostserman, the Pioneers cruised past Bluffton by a 25-12, 25-21, 18-25, 25-20 tally to start off the conference slate with a bang.
The Pioneers were pristine in the first set, amassing 13 kills to two errors while holding the Beavers to a -.091 attacking percentage. Transylvania led wire-to-wire in the second set, jumping out to leads of 4-0 and 8-1, holding off a late Bluffton surge to corral a 2-0 match lead.
Bluffton turned the tables in the third set, using a hot start to build a 14-5 advantage on the Pioneers. Transylvania battled back to close within six points at 21-15, but Bluffton came up with timely kills to secure the third set.
The fourth set emerged as a tight battle with six early ties. With the set tied at 11-11, the Pioneers grew their distance with a collective attack led by Scheper, Madison Sweeney, Madi Davis, and Klosterman. An ace from Davis stretched Transylvania's lead to 17-14 and Lauren Reynolds followed with a kill to increase Transy's breathing room. Scheper's 17th kill was the final point of the match as the Pioneers closed off the set with a .351 attacking percentage.
Makayla Davis led the Pioneers with 19 assists while Grace Ward followed closely with 18 assists, along with a team-high three aces. Sylvie Miller led all players with 18 digs.
Off the heels of their crucial conference win, the Pioneers blew past Trine in the middle game of Bluffton's hosted tri-match with a 25-17, 25-13, 25-17 victory to complete the Saturday sweep.
The Pioneers return to play on Wednesday, October 6 at home against the Franklin College Grizzlies. Opening serve is set for 7:00 p.m. from the Beck Center.
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