By By: CASEY McDONALD
@casey_ace13
IU South Bend volleyball took to the court on a chilly September night against the Fighting Saints of the University of St. Francis. The looming celebration of head coach Jamie Ashmore’s win number 100 with the Titans was on everyone’s minds. Going into this matchup, the Titans were 0-11 all time against the Saints, but that had no impact on the players.
RIght off the bat it was a back and forth battle between the two teams, as neither got a big lead on the other. Going 23-23 in the first set, it was anybody’s game to win. But kills by both juniors Sarah Allison and Ashli Drewes gave the Titans the 1-0 on the match.
The second set went the exact same way, going neck and neck up until senior star Ashley McClintock tied the game at 19 points each. Yet the fighting saints took the victory in that set when they went on a six point run, tying the match at one a piece.
Coach Ashmore and the Titans did not like that very well, as they stopped their way to a victory in the third set. The Titans started off with a strong 21-13 lead, as the fighting saints charged back to tie the score 22-22.
Now that is a CCAC rivalry right there. Allison took the lead again, however, winning the next two points for IUSB, putting them back on top.
The two teams seem to like to be very close with each other, to close for comfort within scoring actually. The Titans went 19-11 on the match when St. Francis came back to tie the game up at 23 a piece. The one-hundredth victory was in the reach of the Titans as freshman Morgan Powell made the final kill to win the match.
The Titans complete their first school history win against the Fighting Saints of St. Francis, 3-1, giving Jamie Ashmore her one-hundredth win. Senior Janelle Rehlander led the team with 28 digs, and McClintock and Allison with 19 and 15 kills, respectively. This match ends with the 4-4 record for the Titans, 1-0 at home.
