Oilers End Season With Heartbreaker In Marquette
The University of Findlay volleyball team concluded their season on Wednesday, November 20 with a 3-2 (25-20, 22-25, 25-23, 24-26, 18-16) loss to Northern Michigan in the first round of the Great Lakes Intercollegiate Athletic Conference Tournament in Marquette, Michigan.
The end of the match brought with it the end of five player's careers. Two such players have been offensive keys all year and were again tonight. Mackenzie Vorst, who finishes ninth in the GLIAC in kills with 317 on the year, had 13 kills and three blocks in the match.
The other senior ending a stellar offensive career was Danielle Taflinger, who picked up 10 kills in the closely contested loss. Taflinger led the GLIAC in hitting percentage by 34 points as she hit .344, which is the third highest hitting percentage in a season in Findlay history. The middle blocker set that record her sophomore year, hitting .360, and fell just short of that mark in her All-American junior campaign as she hit .352. She also had four blocks in the match. Her 1.02 blocks per set is good enough for fifth in the GLIAC this season.
Solidifying her value as an offensive threat was freshman Hannah Tong, who picked up 18 kills in the match.
Making their mark in the contest were sophomore Andrea Roach and sophomore Julie Lyons. Each collected eight kills and Lyons added six blocks for Findlay. Her .280 hitting percentage is good enough for tenth in the conference this season.
Junior Amanda Calhoun finished her solid season with another good contest as she managed to gather 57 assists, 11 digs and five blocks. At 9.45 assists per set, the setter is eighth best in the GLIAC in that category.
Another senior ending her career is Brittany Hall. The defensive specialist led the Oilers on defense as she amassed 17 digs.
Junior Samantha Granger was also a key defensive factor for Findlay as she had ten digs.
The Oilers end their season with a 20-12 overall record.