By: Matthew Lood
Sports Liaison
IU South Bend volleyball played in the Aquinas/Cornerstone Invitation Sept. 8-10. The Titans dropped all four games, but there were positives to take away from the weekend.
The Titans started the invitational with two games on Friday Sept. 8. The first game was against fellow Indiana School Grace College. The Titans were defeated in straight sets 0-3 with some of the highlights including senior middle hitter Felisha Campanello’s six kills and sophomore defensive specialist Sydney Hanna’s 14 digs.
After dropping three sets to Grace College, the Titans would be right back on the court in the nightcap, facing off against hosts Aquinas College in Michigan. The Titans came prepared to play against the Saints, taking the first 2 sets in dominating fashion: 25-19 in set one and 25-20 in set two.
They failed to muster the knockout blow versus the hosts from Grand Rapids as the Saints rattled off three straight set wins to beat the Titans 2-3. Junior outside hitter Macy Sherman led the charge defensively in this game, registering 13 digs. Sophomore setter Emma Knowlton also shined in this game, with two aces off serves and a staggering 42 assists. Sophomore outside hitter Madison Figg led the charge offensively with five kills.
After a hard-fought game versus the Saints of Aquinas College, the Titans would be back on the court Saturday morning with two more games. The first game Saturday morning would come against Mount Vernon Nazarene College from Ohio. The Titans would again drop three straight sets, being defeated 0-3 by the Cougars from Mount Vernon Nazarene College. Senior middle hitter Abby Seeger would try to spark the Titans with six kills and two blocks at the net; however, it was not enough to defeat the Cougars.
The final game of the long weekend for the Titans would come against the other hosts, Cornerstone University. The Titans played hard throughout the game, dropping a very close first set at 22-25, before rallying to win the second set 25-18. The Titans went on to drop the next two sets, ultimately losing the game 1-3 and dropping to 0-4 on the weekend. Sophomore outside hitter Macy Sherman would lead the Titans with nine kills, and seniors Abby Seeger and Alexis Joyner would both tally another eight kills for the Titans. At the net, Abby Seeger would shine again, tallying another four blocks, while Felisha Campenello and Macy Sherman would follow her lead with three blocks each.
After such a busy weekend, the Titans have earned a rest and look to reset before the start of the conference season. At the time of publication, the Titans looked forward to the Sept. 19 game against IU Northwest of Gary, Ind.
The volleyball Titans will return home to take on the Lakers of Roosevelt University on Sept. 21 and Calumet College of Saint Joseph on Sept. 28. The Titans boast a 1-1 record in conference play, where they look to regain valuable conference standing with some big wins against conference foes.
