MADISON, Wis. – Facing a 22-17 deficit in the decisive fourth set, the Edgewood College volleyball team rode a trio of kills by Erika Van Engen to rally for the 3-1 win (25-21, 25-20, 23-25, 25-23) over Dominican and give head coach Paul Schlomer his 200th victory on Friday night.
Already far and away the all-time winningest coach in program history, the victory makes Schlomer the first-ever Edgewood College volleyball coach to reach the 200-win mark in only his 12th season.
Holding a 2-1 lead, the Eagles (6-10, 3-0 NACC) were in danger of giving Dominican the momentum heading into a possible fifth set. Trailing 22-17 in the fourth, the Eagles rattled off six straight points to take the lead after utilizing three kills by Erika Van Engen and a trio of errors by the Stars (8-9, 2-2 NACC). A kill by Kendyl Todd, who finished with a match-high 16 kills, tied it up at 23, but the Eagles put it away with a Renee Meister kill and Dominican attack error to end the match.
Van Engen and Meister each finished with double-digit kills while freshman Mackenzie Doherty added a team-high 13 kills. Setters Alex Zapuchlak posted 17 assists and 13 digs and Haley Schwenn contributed 24 assists and 10 digs in the first match of the season where they each posted double-doubles.
After taking down the Stars handedly in the first two sets, the Eagles nearly secured the win in an entertaining third set. The Eagles fought off two straight set points until a kill by Dominican's Kendyl Todd kept the Stars alive.
Todd hit .368 on the match and made some emphatic kills throughout the match. She benefited from freshman Anastasia Labadessa's match-high 36 assists.
In one of the most entertaining matches all season, it was the Eagles first match where every set was decided by fewer than five points. Long rallies and patient offenses punctuated a competitive bout that saw both teams combine for 338 total attack attempts, nearly 100 kills, and over 160 digs.
The Eagles host their first triangular of the season tomorrow (Saturday, September 30) against Concordia Chicago and Maranatha Baptist with matches set to start at noon, 2:00 p.m., and 4:00 p.m.
