Women’s volleyball team rallies but falls to Manchester in five sets

NORTH MANCHESTER, Ind. – The Olivet College volleyball team rallied from down two sets to force a fifth set. Manchester (Ind.) University won the deciding set 15-12 to beat the Comets in a non-conference match this evening inside the Stauffer-Wolfe Arena in North Manchester, Indiana.

Final Score: Manchester def. Olivet 25-18, 25-21, 20-25, 24-26, 15-12
Location: Stauffer-Wolfe Arena; North Manchester, Ind.
Records: Olivet 5-4 overall, Manchester 1-5 overall

• The only time the Comets led in the first set was after they scored the first point. From that point, the Spartans scored four consecutive points and never looked back.
• Olivet held an 11-7 lead in the second set. The Comets continued to hold the advantage, leading by as many as five points twice. Following the last time at 19-14, Manchester went on a 5-0 run to level the score. The Spartans then closed the set on a 6-2 run to win it, 25-21.
• In the third set, Manchester used a 6-0 scoring spurt to turn a 12-8 deficit into a 14-12 lead. The Comets responded with five straight points to go up 17-14. Olivet did not relinquish its advantage for the rest of the set.
• Olivet jumped out to a 7-0 lead in the fourth set and never trailed for the rest of the set.
• In the fifth set, the Comets had a pair of two-point cushions, 7-5 and 8-6. The Spartans put the next two points on the scoreboard to tie the score. A bad set put Olivet back on top before Manchester added two points to its total to go up 10-9. The teams traded points to create an 11-11 tie. Three attack errors gave the Spartans a three-point lead, 14-11. The Comets got one point back before a Manchester kill ended the set and match.

• Junior Morgan Champion recorded a team-leading 12 kills.
• Sophomore Laken Groll and junior Brittney Prince each had 10 kills.
• Junior Madelyn Notenbaum finished with team-highs in set assists (27) and digs (12).
• Junior libero Gabrielle Mundt also tallied double digit digs with 11.

• Haley Duncan slammed down a match-high 20 kills.
• Hannah Tevis was next with 11 kills.
• Lauren Gandhi dished out 26 set assists.
• Mackenzie Rooks collected 12 digs.

• Olivet competes in the #MarissaStrong Tournament Friday and Saturday, hosted by Knox College in Galesburg, Illinois. On Friday, the Comets play Illinois College at 5 p.m. ET, followed by a match against Anderson (Ind.) University at approximately 9 p.m. ET. On Saturday, Olivet faces Westminster (Mo.) College at 10 a.m. ET, followed by a match against the host Prairie Fire.