DECATUR, Ill. - The Elmhurst volleyball team fell short of its goal of winning the CCIW Tournament after falling 25-21, 25-15, 25-20 to 15th-ranked Carthage College.
Carthage turned an 8-8 score in the opening set into a four-point cushion with a 4-0 run. Elmhurst closed to within two points at 20-18, but the Lady Reds finished the set with a 5-3 run to take the opening set.
Elmhurst started quickly in the second, building a quick 9-4 lead and forcing Carthage to burn a timeout. The Bluejays led 11-7, but Carthage responded with an 8-0 run to surge in front at 15-11 and take control of the set. The Lady Reds finished the set on a 10-4 run to earn the 25-15 win.
Carthage stormed out to an early 6-1 lead in the third set and never trailed for the duration of the set. Elmhurst made a late run in the set, using a 4-1 run to pull to within a point at 18-17. The Bluejays trailed at 20-19 following an ace from Jamie Vargo, but Carthage scored the next four points to open up five match points. A kill from Emily Heuermann gave the Lady Reds the set at 25-20 and the match.
Elmhurst hit .125 in the contest with 34 kills and 21 errors in 104 swings.
Alli Rogers and Vargo finished with eight kills apiece for the Bluejays.
Mel Lundin added six kills while
Mary Lawrence finished with five.
Hannah Davis chipped in with four kills for the Bluejays.
Hannah Nimrick finished with 26 assists and eights digs while
Amy Schryver tallied seven digs in the loss.
Carthage hit .263 in the contest with 36 kills and 11 errors in 95 attacks. Heuermann paced the Lady Reds with 11 kills while Jamie Dickinson added seven kills and nine digs. Karen Chin finished with 28 assists and eight digs while Luci Krenzke totaled 10 digs.
Elmhurst, ranked 17th in the latest AVCA Division III national poll fell to 24-11 with the loss while Carthage improved to 31-7 overall. Carthage secured the league's automatic bid to the NCAA Tournament with the victory. Elmhurst will have to hope for an at-large bid to next week's NCAA Tournament. The tournament field will be announced on Monday at 10:00 a.m. on www.ncaa.com.
