NORTHFIELD, Minn. – Senior
Lilah Van Scoyoc reached the 1,000-kill milestone as the St. Olaf College volleyball team swept Hamline University by scores of 25-16, 25-21, 25-16 in Minnesota Intercollegiate Athletic Conference (MIAC) play on Saturday afternoon at Skoglund Center.
After entering the afternoon six kills shy of 1,000, Van Scoyoc hit the milestone in the third set of the sweep as St. Olaf (14-5, 4-1 MIAC) stretched its winning streak to four with the sweep of Hamline (4-13, 1-4 MIAC). The win was the 10th in a row in the series for the Oles, who received votes in this week's American Volleyball Coaches Association (AVCA)-Taraflex Division III Women's Volleyball Poll.
Senior
Maren Miller paced St. Olaf with a match-high 12 kills with just one attack error to hit .478 in the win. Miller also was in on four blocks for the Oles, who hit .292 in the victory. Senior
Evelyn Kreft added nine kills, while Van Scoyoc and junior
Mehsa Krause had seven apiece. Krause had a match-high 17 digs, while senior
Michaela Dooley recorded 16 digs and a match-high three aces.
St. Olaf hit .348 and held Hamline to a .077 clip to ease to a win in the opening set. After three early ties, the Oles broke a 4-4 tie with a 7-1 run and led by at least four the rest of the way. Miller tallied four kills on eight swings in the set, while first year
Brynna Fox hit a pair of aces.
In the second, St. Olaf cooled off offensively to a .196 hitting percentage and faced a 16-12 deficit before winning seven of the next eight points to take the lead. The Pipers got consecutive kills from Lydia Graham to even the set at 20-20, but late aces from Krause and Dooley helped the Oles close the set on a 5-1 run to take a two-sets-to-none lead.
Miller and Van Scoyoc combined for nine kills in the third set to propel St. Olaf to the sweep and its 10th consecutive win over Hamline. The Pipers were up 8-7 before the Oles won 12 of the next 13 points, including a run of nine points in a row. Van Scoyoc had four kills, including the 1,000th of her career, during the 12-1 spurt. St. Olaf hit .378 with 16 kills and just two attack errors in the third.
The Oles will play their next three matches on the road, starting with a trip to nationally-ranked UW-Eau Claire on Wednesday, Oct. 14 for a 7 p.m. start.
