Anderson, Ind. – The Transylvania volleyball team overcame a concerted upset bid by the Anderson University Ravens to defeat the Ravens in five sets on Sunday afternoon at O.C. Lewis Gymnasium.
The Pioneers overcame two shocking results in the first two sets to storm back for a 23-25, 26-28, 25-13, 25-17, 15-13 win over the Ravens to improve to 13-0 on the season and 8-0 in Heartland Collegiate Athletic Conference play. The Ravens fell to 2-12 overall and 0-8 in their ambitious rally on Sunday.
Karrington Jackson led the Pioneers with 15 kills and added five digs in two blocks in a clutch effort while Suzanne Klosterman tallied 13 kills and Madi Davis had a crucial 11 kills in a frontline power performance over the final three sets from the Pioneers.
Kailey Campbell paced the backline with a career-high 26 digs and added five assists for a Transylvania defense which also sharpened in the second half of the afternoon battle.
Anderson was intent on staging the upset from the start as the Ravens thrust the Pioneers into early deficits in each of the first two sets to win both by razor-thin margins.
The Ravens put together a consistent return game in the first hour of the match, gaining a 15-10 lead in the first set. Anderson's lead bloomed to 23-17 late in the first set but the Pioneers staged a run of points to earn a shot at a comeback win, scoring six of the next seven points to cut the deficit to 24-23.
Transylvania's chance to complete the comeback fell short as the set ended on a service error, handing the Ravens a 1-0 match lead.
Anderson registered 19 kills in the second set to hold on for victory as another late lead for the Ravens evaporated. The Pioneers climbed out of a 23-18 hole to tie up the set at 24-all and forced deuce at 25-25 and 26-26. The Ravens came up with their second straight winning-time performance to start the afternoon by capitalizing on a service error by Transy and then finishing off the set with a kill for the 28-26 victory.
The Pioneers suddenly shifted momentum in their direction to start the third set, emerging for a 9-4 lead that would set the tone for the rest of the afternoon. Transylvania stretched the lead to 17-8 as Davis scored three straight points in a row on a kill followed by back-to-back aces.
Transylvania registered a .333 hitting percentage in the third set while holding Anderson to a .086 hitting percentage to coast to the most lopsided victory of any of the five sets.
The Pioneers were as proficient in the fourth set as they were in the third, racking up a match-best 14 kills to only two errors on the way towards clinching a 25-17 victory and forcing the 2-2 set tie. Davis rose to the occasion again with four kills in the fourth set while Kori Rudolph finished off the win with consecutive aces.
Though Transylvania achieved heavy momentum into the fifth set, the Ravens refused to quit as they bounced back from a 7-5 deficit to take an 11-9 lead. It was Transylvania's turn to answer back as Davis sent home another kill and the Ravens failed to return the next point, translating to an 11-11 score in the fifth.
Anderson retook the lead at 12-11 but Jackson delivered two straight fiery kills to put the Pioneers in front at 13-12. Klosterman added a line drive kill along the right side of the court and Jackson put her stamp on the match with her third kill over the final five rallies of the afternoon to clinch the 15-13 win for the Pioneers.
Four different Pioneers had double-digit digs as Olivia Stotz tallied a career-high 17 digs while Grace Ward added 13 digs and Ava Beltsos tallied 12. Ward also registered 42 of Transy's 48 assists for the afternoon. The Pioneers delivered a season-best 12 team aces with Rudolph serving up five of them.
The Pioneers will wrap up the regular season schedule on Tuesday, February 23 at Franklin College before commencing the HCAC Tournament on Friday, February 26 at the Beck Center with the conference semifinals. The opening serve between Transy and Franklin is scheduled for 6:00 p.m. from the Spurlock Center in Franklin, Indiana.
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