The No. 4 ranked Bulldogs volleyball team remained undefeated on the season with a sweep of the Midwest Region Crossover.
The Bulldogs (20-0, 9-0 in the GLIAC) defeated the Maryville University Saints (10-10, 4-2 in the GLVC) by a score of 3-0 on Friday, Oct. 18, and then defeated the Northwood Wolves (14-6, 5-2 in the GLIAC) by a score of 3-0 later that day. Ferris then took down the No. 19 ranked Quincy Hawks (18-2, 5-0 in the GLVC) by a score of 3-2 on Saturday, Oct. 19.
With their sweep of the Midwest Region Crossover, the Bulldogs now have the best record in all of NCAA DII volleyball at 20-0, with the University of Nebraska-Kearney following behind Ferris with a record of 19-0.
Senior setter Kaylee Maat spoke about the team’s strategy for facing off against non-conference opponents.
“Our strategy was the same as what we always do, we came in with a plan against Quincy and Maryville as we always do, come with a plan and a scout and adapt as the game goes on,” Maat said. “It is the same way how we are going to plan for the post-season, so this has been a good test for our team going against teams in the GLVC and G-MAC.”
Ferris remained dominant against the Maryville Saints, who faced off for the first time in the two schools’ history. The Bulldogs won all three sets, winning the first set soundly by a score of 25-19, the second 25-23, then finished off the Saints in the third set by 25-15.
Senior outside hitter Claire Nowicki led this match with 14 kills, a .433 kill percentage and 16 total points. Senior outside hitter Olivia Henneman-Dallape had 12 kills and 13 total points, while freshman outside hitter Gabby Piazza had eight kills and nine total points.
For the Bulldogs’ second game on Friday, they faced off against the Northwood Wolves of the G-MAC, the Bulldogs faced the Wolves earlier this season defeating them 3-1 on Oct. 1, and they continued that trend in this match. The Bulldogs beat the Wolves soundly, winning the first set by a score of 25-17, the second 25-14 and defeated them in the third set by a score of 25-13.
Piazza had the best match of her young career leading the match with 14 kills on 18 attempts, a .677 kill percentage and 16 total points. Nowicki had 12 kills on 17 attempts, with a .706 kill percentage and 12 total points, while Maat led the match with 31 total assists.
The Bulldogs went up against the No. 19 ranked Quincy Eagles team from the GLVC the following day and took them down narrowly. Ferris lost the first set by a score of 25-23, then fell behind losing the second set by a score of 25-17. This is the first time this season that the Bulldogs have fallen into a 2-0 set deficit. However, the Bulldogs came back and won the third set dominantly by a score of 25-14, the fourth set 25-20, and capping off the comeback with a 15-13 win in the fifth and final set.
Henneman-Dallape spoke about the turning point of the match against the Eagles.
“The third set was the turning point for us for sure, our huddle before the start of the third set helped us turn the game around,” said Henneman-Dallape. “We knew that we were going to go out swinging and not let anyone beat us in hustle, energy and communication, I really believe our chemistry and connection with each other really allowed us to lean on each other and gain momentum.”
Henneman-Dallape had 22 kills on 51 attempts with 27.5 total points, while senior middle hitter Chelsie Freeman contributed 14 kills on 21 attempts with 16.5 total points.
Senior libero Leah Bylut enjoyed the competition of the Midwest Region Crossover.
“The Midwest Regional Crossover is a tournament we look forward to every year just because the competition level is so high, and it’s super exciting cheering for other teams in our conference,” Bylut said. “Every match we played was definitely a battle, and it was great for us to be tested and able to pull off some good wins.”
The Bulldogs return to Ewigleben Sports Arena to face off against the Davenport Panthers on Thursday, Oct. 24 at 6 p.m. Then they travel to Chicago for a match against the Roosevelt Lakers on Friday, Oct. 25.