Volleyball Falls in HCAC Semifinals to Bluffton

BLUFFTON, Ohio – A strong 2009 season for the Defiance College volleyball team came to an end on Saturday night in the Heartland Collegiate Athletic Conference Semifinals. The fourth-seeded Jackets fell 25-15, 25-17, 23-25, 25-13 to the top-seeded Bluffton squad. 

BU came out firing and posted a .370 hitting percentage in the opening set and smacked 12 kills in 27 swings. DC's Marlea Rolander countered with three kills in four tries but the rest of the team managed only seven kills and an .080 percentage in the 25-15 loss. 

The Beavers remained in control throughout the second set, jumping to a 2-0 lead and holding a 10-9 edge midway through the set. Bluffton then put the game out of reach with a 7-2 rally to build the 18-11 cushion and coasted to the 25-17 victory. 

Defiance avoided the sweep by taking the third set 25-23. DC raced to an 8-3 lead and held off a late flurry from Bluffton to force the fourth set. Sara Porter finished the win with a kill on the only match point of the night for the Jackets. 

The momentum would be short lived, as Bluffton scored the first five points of the fourth set. The Jackets temporarily recovered to claw within 13-11, only to see BU close the set on a 12-2 spurt to take the 25-13 victory. 

Rolander ended with 12 kills and a .526 percentage, while Porter had 12 kills and Heather Bradshaw had 13 digs. Danyel Lipps turned in nine kills to push her all-time DC record to 1,320 for her career. 

The semifinal loss closed the collegiate careers of DC's four-year letterwinners Ashton Judis and Lipps. The duo helped the Jackets to 54 victories during their time with Defiance, and the 22 wins in 2009 marked the program's highest win total since posting 26 victories in 2003.