Lexington, Ky. – The No. 3 Transylvania volleyball team swept the No. 19 Bluffton University Beavers in the Heartland Collegiate Athletic Conference Tournament semifinal on Friday evening at the Beck Center, clinching a spot in the upcoming HCAC Tournament Championship match.
The Pioneers defeated the Beavers 25-15, 25-19, 25-19 to advance to their fourth consecutive HCAC Tournament Championship appearance, set for Sunday afternoon at 2:00 p.m. versus tournament No. 2 seed Mount St. Joseph University at the Beck Center.
The Pioneers improved their record to 14-1 on the season and 9-1 against HCAC foes in conference play as they beat Bluffton for the third time in three matchups this season. The Beavers fell to 15-8 overall as they were eliminated from the conference tournament.
After dueling for five sets in the conference-designated regular season match earlier in the 2020-21 season, the tournament No. 1 seed Pioneers required only three sets in the conference tournament rematch to dispose of the No. 4 seed Beavers.
With senior Kori Rudolph holding serve for four straight points, the Pioneers transformed a 6-6 game in the opening set into an 18-9 lead as Karrington Jackson registered three of her five first-set kills during the onslaught.
The Pioneers registered a breathtaking 17 kills against only two errors in the first set for a .417 hitting percentage to pull away for their largest margin of victory of the three sets.
Bluffton threatened to tie up the match in the second set as the visitors scored the first four points of the set and took a 12-4 lead after an ace. The Pioneers gnawed away at the deficit with a 13-5 run as they displayed their championship resolve.
Once Transy climbed the mountain, the Pioneers quickly put away the Beavers, closing the set on an 8-0 run as Madison Sweeney leveled three kills in the final five points while Miller added a kill and two aces to end the second set with an exclamation point.
The Pioneers rode the momentum of their second-set finish to fuel their finishing touch in the third set. Transylvania battled its way to a 7-4 lead while Sweeney and Jackson went on the attack once again to put the Pioneers ahead 14-8.
Bluffton cut the deficit to 18-16 but Sweeney delivered another kill and Bluffton was unable to return the next two rallies to spot the Pioneers a 21-16 lead.
Transylvania stamped its ticket to the 2021 HCAC Tournament Championship match by scoring four of the last five points as Suzanne Klosterman closed out the night with a kill.
Sweeney led all players with 10 kills while Jackson and Miller each powered home eight kills apiece. Miller was also the match leader in digs with 16. Grace Ward led all players with 27 assists and provided 11 digs. Davis paced all players with four blocks.
The defending HCAC Tournament Champion Pioneers will face their third different opponent in the HCAC Tournament Championship after defeating Earlham last season and facing Rose-Hulman the prior two seasons as they meet Mount St. Joseph. Transylvania defeated the No. 13 nationally-ranked Lions in their lone meeting of the season in Lexington on February 17 in a three-set sweep that went to the Pioneers.
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