ROCKFORD, Ill. – The fourth-ranked Harper College volleyball team faced several strong opponents at the Rock Valley Invitational over the weekend. The Hawks (29-13) came out with one win over a ranked opponent.

Harper vs. No. 3 Ridgewater College

Harper dropped the Friday morning match to Ridgewater in five sets, 21-25, 25-21, 25-21, 24-26, 10-15. Daniele Sortino (Elk Grove Village, Ill. /Elk Grove) and Sarah Bregenzer (Wauconda, Ill./Mundelein) paced the attack with 11 kills apiece. Three Hawks recorded double-doubles in the match: Lindsey Murphy (Lake in the Hills, Ill./Crystal Lake South) (10 digs, 26 assists), Jillian Hoffman (Arlington Heights, Ill./Hersey) (12 digs, 19 assists) and Lauren Sokolowski (Rolling Meadows, Ill./Rolling Meadows) (10 kills, 15 digs).

Reigning NJCAA National Player of the Week Meghan Chartier (Inverness, Ill./Buffalo Grove) tallied a career-high 42 digs in the match. The 42 dig-effort was a Harper five-set dig record, eclipsing Lynette Mueller's previous record of 40 digs in a five-set match in 2010. The all-time Harper digs record is 44, posted by Gina Benvenuti back in 2006.

"Hopefully we learned something from the loss that will help us down the road, which is the whole point of being in this tournament," said Harper head coach Bob Vilsoet.

Harper vs. No. 5 Central Lakes College-Brainerd

The Hawks played their third straight five-set match against a ranked opponent, this time coming out on top over the Raiders on Friday afternoon, 20-25, 25-20, 25-22, 18-25, 15-11. Sokolowski put down 11 kills to go along with 22 digs, and Bregenzer and Sortino contributed 10 kills apiece. Sortino also totaled six blocks and was 14-of-14 serving with an ace.

Murphy (14 digs, 21 assists) posted her third straight double-double, and Chartier once again played great defense with 37 digs and also was 26-of-26 serving with four aces.

Harper vs. No. 16 (D2) Owens Community College

Harper ran into a very good Owens team in its opening match on Saturday, losing in straight sets (19-25, 17-25, 16-25). Sortino smashed six kills for the Hawks, and Alyssia Dugo (Algonquin, Ill. /Jacobs) and Shannon Igielski (Streamwood, Ill/St. Edward) each put down five kills.

Harper vs. Sauk Valley Community College

The Hawks faced another tough opponent in the Skyhawks, losing in three sets (24-26, 18-25, 21-25).

Match highlights:

-Lindsey Murphy (Lake in the Hills, Ill./Crystal Lake South) 19-of-19 serving, five aces, 11 digs , 14 assists

-Meghan Chartier (Inverness, Ill./Buffalo Grove) 14-of-14 serving, two aces, 16 digs

-Lauren Sokolowski (Rolling Meadows, Ill./Rolling Meadows) six kills, 10 digs

Harper vs. Black Hawk College-Moline

Harper closed out the weekend with a five-set loss to Black Hawk (17-25, 25-15, 21-25, 25-17, 11-15).

Match highlights:

-Adriana Loiacono (Bartlett, Ill./South Elgin) 29-of-30 hitting with 11 kills

-Daniele Sortino (Elk Grove Village, Ill. /Elk Grove) 11 kills, two service aces

-Sarah Berggren (Barrington, Ill./Barrington)-four blocks, three kills

-Meghan Chartier (Inverness, Ill./Buffalo Grove) 28 digs

-Lindsey Murphy (Lake in the Hills, Ill./Crystal Lake South)-18 digs, 27 assists

-Jillian Hoffman (Arlington Heights, Ill./Hersey)-10 digs, 10 assists

Up Next

Harper is back on the court for match on Thursday, Oct. 23 at McHenry County College. First serve is set for 6 PM. The Hawks will play Kankakee Community College and Elgin Community College to close out the regular season at the Kankakee Tri-Match on Saturday, Oct. 25 beginning at 10 AM.