FSU Volleyball Sweeps Past Rockhurst
The Ferris State University women's volleyball won for the fourth time in its last five outings as the Bulldogs recorded a 3-0 victory (25-20, 31-29, 25-23) against the Rockhurst Hawks this Friday (Oct. 15) in their second Mizuno GLVC/GLIAC Crossover Tournament match held at the Great Lakes Center in Aurora, Ill.
Ferris State, which improves to 11-7 overall on the season with the win, was led offensively by junior Ashley Huntey (Stanwood/Morley-Stanwood). The Bulldog outside hitter recorded her seventh double-double of the season with a match-best 17 kills and 13 digs as Ferris State posted a .221 hitting percentage in the three-set outing.
Senior middle hitter Arielle Goodson (Grand Rapids/Central) had 14 kills in the contest to join Huntey, who produced a .406 attack percentage to lead all players. Sophomore outside hitter Aly Brecht (Alma) put down nine kills on the opposition's side while sophomore middle hitter Anne Sutton (Grand Rapids/Northview) and senior middle hitter Danielle Hamilton (Galesburg/Galesburg-Augusta) added eight as the Bulldogs dominated the Hawks in team kills, 56-to-34.
FSU's productive hitting was aided by the play of sophomore setter Samantha Fordyce (DeWitt), who registered a match-leading 50 assists and contributed on the defensive side with nine digs. Junior Lisa Tobiczyk's (Marysville) 21 digs were tops among all participants and she was supported by Aly Brecht and senior libero Dana Ruttle (Reed City) as the two finished with nine digs each.
Ferris State took the first set by a 25-20 score as an Arielle Goodson kill accounted for the winning point. In a set which featured four ties and one lead change, the Bulldogs outpointed the Hawks 10-5 midway through the stanza en route to taking a 1-0 lead in the non-conference match.
The second set, which saw Ferris State hit for a .213 percentage while limiting Rockhurst to a .065 hitting efficiency, went back-and-forth before the Bulldogs would eventually prevail. Tied at 28-all, FSU broke the deadlock thanks to a kill by Arielle Goodson but an ensuing service error knotted the set up 29-29. This time, the Bulldogs would regain the lead and hold it as Ashley Huntey hammered a set from Samantha Fordyce to give Ferris State a 30-29 advantage. An attack error by Rockhurst followed as Danielle Hamilton blocked a Hawks' attempt for the deciding point.
In the third set, both teams countered with point after point until after the third and final tie at 11-all. Ferris State reeled off five unanswered points to take a 16-11 lead before the Hawks came flying back to get within three points (18-15). The Bulldogs would net the next four points and were able to maintain a slim edge although Rockhurst narrowed the gap to 24-23 on the verge of match point. The final play would result in Ferris State's favor as Arielle Goodson slammed home the kill via a Samantha Fordyce set to give the Bulldogs a key regional win.
Rockhurst came into the contest receiving votes in this week's (Oct. 12) American Volleyball Coaches Association (AVCA) Division II Coaches Top 25 Poll and dropped to 16-6 overall on the season with the loss to Ferris State.
The Bulldogs will now get set for their final appearance at the GLVC/GLIAC Crossover on Saturday (Oct. 16) versus the Wisconsin-Parkside Rangers. Opening serve for their lone match of the day is scheduled for 1 p.m. (CDT).