CHAMPAIGN, Ill. – The Vincennes University Volleyball team faced a difficult task on day one of the Parkland College Classic, Friday afternoon, facing a pair of Top-15-ranked NJCAA Division-II teams in host No. 3 Parkland and No. 14 Des Moines Area.
The Blazers came away with the two match split, falling to Parkland 8-25, 12-25, 18-25, before coming back to pick up the five-set win over Des Moines Area, 18-25, 17-25, 25-21, 25-12, 15-10.
Vincennes didn't get off to the best of starts for this weekend classic. Facing host and D-II No. 3-ranked Parkland College.
The Cobras jumped out to an early lead in the opening set and only allowed the Blazers to score eight points.
Parkland continued this strong showing on their home floor in the second set, with VU showing some signs of improvement, but Parkland came away with the 25-12 set two victory.
Parkland looked to close out the first match of the day on a strong note, but the Blazers weren't going to go away quietly.
VU put up a strong fight in the third set but could not overcome Parkland's lead as Vincennes fell in three sets to the Cobras. Dropping set three 25-18.
"We were playing catch up during the entire match," VUVB head coach Gary Sien said. "We had a tough time matching the speed in which Parkland was playing at."
Freshman hitter Addison Ainscough (Cannelburg, Ind.) led the Blazers offensively, finishing with a team-high six kills, as well as five digs and a set assist on the match.
Sophomore Jamie Russell (East St. Louis, Ill.) and freshman Malgorzata Banasiak (Gdynia, Poland) finished with five kills each, with Russell also adding four digs on the evening.
Sophomore Grace Earp (Mattoon, Ind.) led Vincennes defensively, commanding the back row and finishing with a team-high 10 digs in the game.
VU looked to shake off this early loss and come away with a win over D-II No. 14-ranked Des Moines Area in their second match of the day.
The Blazers had little time to rest and recover from their earlier match, as VU was playing back-to-back matches.
Des Moines Area got the jump on Vincennes early in set one, taking the 1-0 match lead with a 25-18 opening set victory.
The Bears continued to find holes in the Trailblazer defense, as Des Moines Area finished off set two 25-17 to hold a commanding 2-0 match lead.
Vincennes looked to mount a comeback with their backs against the wall in set three. VU put the right pieces together and came away with the win in the third set, 25-21.
Needing to force a fifth-set, the Blazers continued their comeback with a strong 25-12 set four victory to even the match at 2-2 and force a fifth set.
With the momentum firmly on their side, Vincennes finished off their comeback by taking set five 15-10 over Des Moines Area. Giving the Blazers a split of their first two matches of the Parkland College Classic.
"It took us five sets, including the ones from the Parkland match, for us to get going," Sien added. "There were some changes in the lineup and some adjustments were made on the fly."
VU was led by freshman Jagoda Szybinska (Poznan, Poland), who finished with a team-high 15 kills, while also adding two digs and two set assists.
Addison Ainscough nearly completed another double-double, ending her day with 12 kills and nine digs against Des Moines Area. Ainscough also finished with a pair of blocks and a set assists.
Russell and Banasiak finished with nine kills each, with Banasiak adding a pair of block assists to her totals.
The VU offense ran well through their freshman setters of Hannah Graber (Montgomery, Ind.) and Josephine Mulligan (Saint John, Ind.). Graber finished with a double-double, ending with a team-high 27 set assists and 12 digs. Graber also added a team-high three aces.
Mulligan ended her day with 19 set assists in the Blazers win, while also adding three digs and two kills.
Sophomores Emilie Cornelson (Saskatoon, Canada) and Amee Beedle (Wheaton, Ill.) finished with solid games offensively and defensively.
Cornelson finished with six kills offensively for VU, while also adding a team-high four block assists on the defensive side.
Beedle ended her day with seven kills and an ace offensively and had a big impact on the defensive end with 17 digs.
The Blazers were led defensively by Grace Earp, who again led VU with 19 digs. Earp would also add three set assists, two aces and a kill to her line score.
"Once again, our serving put us into a position to win," Sien said. "This time, it was our two setters, Mulligan and Graber, with Grace Earp and Jamie Russell who served long stretches for us. Combine that with a good defensive effort, which allowed us to get some nice swings for kills."
The Blazers will look to continue their momentum on short rest as the finish the Parkland College Classic Saturday, Sept. 25 against McHenry County College at 10 a.m. eastern., followed immediately by facing Lincoln Land Community College at 12 p.m. eastern.
MATCH ONE
Parkland – 25 25 25 x x
VUVB (8-2) – 8 12 18 x x
INDIVIDUAL STATS
Josephine Mulligan – 1 point, 1 ace, 4 digs, 8 set assists
Amee Beedle – 1 point, 1 kill, 5 digs
Addison Ainscough – 6 points, 6 kills, 5 digs, 1 set assist
Emilie Cornelson – 1 point, 1 kill
Jagoda Szybinska – 3 points, 2 kills, 1 solo block, 4 digs
Breanna Metzger – 4 points, 4 kills
Jamie Russell – 5 points, 5 kills, 4 digs
Grace Earp – 10 digs, 1 set assist
Hannah Graber – 3 digs, 12 set assists
Malgorzata Banasiak – 5 points, 5 kills, 2 digs
MATCH TWO
Des Moines Area – 25 25 21 12 10
VUVB (9-2) – 18 17 25 25 15
INDIVIDUAL STATS
Josephine Mulligan – 2 points, 2 kills, 3 digs, 19 set assists
Amee Beedle – 8 points, 1 ace, 7 kills, 17 digs
Addison Ainscough – 13.5 points, 12 kills, 1 solo block, 1 block assist, 9 digs, 1 set assist
Lara Gomes de Castro – 4 digs
Emilie Cornelson – 8 points, 6 kills, 4 block assists
Jagoda Szybinska – 15 points, 15 kills, 2 digs, 2 set assists
Breanna Metzger – 1 dig
Jamie Russell – 9 points, 9 kills, 2 digs
Grace Earp – 3 points, 2 aces, 1 kill, 19 digs, 3 set assists
Hannah Graber – 4 points, 3 aces, 1 kill, 12 digs, 27 set assists
Malgorzata Banasiak – 10 points, 9 kills, 2 block assists, 2 digs