Ashland University volleyball settled for a split in their home opener matches against the Findlay Oilers and the Hillsdale Chargers.

On Friday (Sept. 18) night, the Eagles got their first Great Lakes Intercollegiate Conference win, 3-1, against the Oilers (23-25, 25-19, 29-27, 25-22). 

The Eagles brought a lot of energy and momentum to the court with the ‘W’ on their mind. Even though they battled neck-to-neck with the Oilers in all four matches, the Eagles used their offensive strategies and blocking to stay one step ahead. 

“We are a very offensive team,” said head coach Cass Dixon. “To pass and serve well is the strategy, and we are also a good blocking team.”

Junior outside hitter Alli Cudworth ended the night with 19 kills, juniors Casey Clark with 12 kills and Samantha Zuber with 11 kills. Freshman libero Kaitlin Bean recorded 12 digs.

“Overall, the whole team contributed to that win against Findlay,” said Zuber. “The energy was really high with all the excitement about it being our first home game of the season and we were able to stay resilient throughout the whole match.”

In Saturday’s match, the Eagles struggled to keep up with the Chargers, 1-3 (19-25, 25-15, 17-25, 23-25). 

“We came out not ready, not energetic, and we noticed that before we started playing,” said Cudworth. 

The Eagles were challenged by the Chargers from the start, as they grabbed an early lead in the first match with a strong attacking game and a solid defense. Even with their offensive strategies by Cudworth and Zuber, the Eagles continued to trail behind by five points throughout the first set. 

Dixon noted that defense is the overall struggle for the team.

“For the first set [and a half] we didn’t block at all,” said Dixon. “If we would’ve done those things it would’ve taken care of the things we could control.”

In the second match, the Eagles came out with more energy. After a Hillsdale timeout, the Eagles were able to take the lead with strong plays from juniors Rylee Scott, Cudworth and Zuber, along with senior Audrey Metzger. 

It was after a kill by Metzger and block from Zuber that gave the Eagles a comfortable eight-point lead. 

“As an offensive team, setting up our second match with hitting and blocking is our strong point,” said Cudworth.

The Eagles continued to battle the Chargers in the third and fourth matches by keeping it close. But as both matches went on, it just wasn’t enough and the Eagles became frustrated. 

“It was general frustration that we weren’t playing our game,” said Cudworth. “We know how great we can be and when we just don’t do as great it gets frustrating.”

Dixon added, “We have to find ways to get past that frustration and be able to find new ways to score, stand those games and keep going at it.” 

Cudworth ended the day with a team-high of 16 kills and 16 digs, along with 48 total attacks. Junior setter Mallory Slyder recorded 14 digs and Bean with 12 digs. 

“Give credit to Hillsdale, they outworked us,” said Dixon. They didn’t let anything fall and they kept playing.”

The Eagles will head north this weekend to face other GLIAC opponents, Michigan Tech (Sept. 25) and Northern Michigan (Sept. 26).