Scot Spikers Sweep Oberlin to Move Above .500

WOOSTER, Ohio – The College of Wooster volleyball team moved its record over the .500 mark both overall and in the North Coast Athletic Conference Wednesday evening by sweeping visiting Oberlin College in straight sets (25-18, 25-20, 25-15). With the victory, the Scots move to 9-8 overall and 3-2 in NCAC action this season.
           
In the opening set, the Yeowomen (3-13, 2-3 NCAC) jumped out to a 4-1 lead. The Scots quickly responded with an 8-1 run of their own. Oberlin worked its way back into the set, eventually tying the initial game at 11-11. Wooster utilized a 6-1 run to jump out 17-12, and took the opening set via a KateLynn Riley service ace.
           
Set two featured a nip-and-tuck battle in the opening points with the score tied at 4-4. An Oberlin hitting error followed by a pair of service aces by Riley put Wooster up 7-4. The Scots slowly pulled away and held a 19-11 advantage. However, the Yeowomen wouldn't go quietly, rattling off a 7-3 run of their own, cutting the Wooster advantage to four at 22-18. The two teams traded points, but in similar fashion to the first set, Wooster tallied the set-winning point thanks to a service ace, this time off the arm of Amanda Gottesman.
           
Wooster jumped and held leads of 5-1, 9-4, and 15-9 in the third set before pulling away for the conference victory.
           
Riley led the Scots' offense once again, slamming down a team-high 12 kills on 25 attempts with just one error for a .440 hitting percentage. Adding offensive firepower to a balanced Wooster attack was Sarah Hawke with seven kills, while Megan Earle and Lizzi Beal contributed six and five kills, respectively.
           
Sarah Lorch was a force at the net for Wooster, recording two blocks and three kills, while Riley and Beal teamed up for two assisted blocks apiece.
           
Beal dished out 27 assists on the evening, and added a service ace in guiding the Scots offense. Also of note, Riley recorded a season- and career-high five service aces in the match.
          
Defensively, libero Ali Drushal finished with a team-best 20 digs and chalked up three service aces, while Earle finished with 14 digs.
           
The Scot spikers will next hit the court on Saturday when they host a tri-match with NCAC foe Kenyon College (0-13, 0-5 NCAC) and Malone College (13-7). Wooster will do battle with the Ladies at 11 a.m. inside Timken Gymnasium, and will square off with the Pioneers at 3 p.m. Kenyon and Malone will play each other at 1 p.m.