Carlinville, IL 10/24/2023- The Westminster College volleyball team traveled to Carlinville, Illinois to face the Blackburn College Beavers for the second time this season. The Blue Jays won the first matchup in five sets and looked to sweep the season series on Tuesday night. Westminster would win the match 3-1 (25-16, 29-27, 25-22, 25-20) to improve to 15-11 on the season and 10-4 in the SLIAC. Blackburn falls to 7-20 on the year and 2-11 in the SLIAC.
The Blue Jays would come out and win set one, 25-16. The Beavers would battle in the second set, sending the match into extra points in a very close set. Blackburn would pull away at the end and won the second set, 29-27. Westminster would win the next two sets, 25-22 and 25-20, winning the match 3-1.
Kylie Hasselbacher led the Blue Jays high-flying attack with a game-high sixteen kills. Madisyn Ellis had thirteen kills and Meghan Nolte was the third Blue Jay to have double-digit kills with ten. Malena Bixby would round out the offense with nine kills. Kirsten Schrader led the way defensively, picking twenty-six digs. Three more Blue Jays would have double-digit digs, Braylee Montgomery had fifteen digs, Haylie Schnake had twelve and Gracie Henrikson had eleven digs in the match.
The Blue Jays would have sixteen total blocks. Celissa Kennedy and Meghan Nolte made up the proverbial wall, leading the team with four block assists each. Braylee Montgomery set the pace from the setter position and racked up thirty-six assists.
Westminster will be back in action on Thursday, October 26th at 7:00 p.m., when they take on Lyon College. It is faculty-staff appreciation night inside the Historic Gym.
