Defiance Stumbles in Final Regular Season Contest

TERRE HAUTE, IND. - The Yellow Jackets fell in straight sets in Heartland Collegiate Athletic Conference action at Rose-Hulman on Saturday afternoon to wrap up the 2017 regular season. 

Defiance (10-12 overall, 5-4 HCAC) will enter the Heartland Collegiate Athletic Conference Tournament as the no. 5 seed, and will play a road game on Wednesday evening.

The Yellow Jackets were led in the contest by senior Jaidyn Patridge (Toledo/Springfield) with a team-best 15 digs, while sophomore Abigail Cronin (Lambertville, Mich./Cardinal Stritch Catholic) chipped in 10 digs and 11 assists.

In the opening set, Defiance jumped to the early 3-0 lead before the Engineers rattled off three straight points to tie the contest at 5-5. Rose-Hulman never looked back as back-to-back kills by Bailey Maclnnis extended the RHIT lead to 16-11. DC looked to chip away as junior Marissa Windau (Castalia/Margaretta) landed a kill late in the set but was unable to spark the Defiance attack as they fell 25-15.

The Yellow Jackets attack came alive early in set two as kills by senior Danielle Robbins (Westland, Mich./Wayne Memorial) and freshman Morgan Porter (Defiance) put Defiance on top 6-3. However, Rose-Hulman responded using a five point rally to capture the 8-6 advantage. DC continued to battle as Patridge connected with junior Brooke Plummer (Plain City/Jonathan Alder) to tie the contest at 9-9. After exchanging points, the Engineers put together another run to claim the 24-19 advantage. The Yellow Jackets hung tough tallying five straight points following a pair of Rose-Hulmam miscues before a DC miscue cost them the set.

In the final set, the Engineers pounced early capturing the first five points. They continued to dominate stringing together a pair of rallies to sink the Yellow Jackets and claim the final set 25-14.