DES PLAINES, Ill. – The Harper College volleyball team split a pair of matches at Oakton Community College on Saturday afternoon. The  Hawks (5-2) swept Lincoln College in their first match before losing in straight sets to Oakton.

Harper vs. Lincoln College

Harper earned a sweep of Lincoln (25-23, 25-18, 25-16). In the first set, the Hawks trailed 4-1 early but eventually took a 16-13 lead on their way to a very narrow victory. Sarah Bregenzer (Wauconda, Ill./Mundelein) led the way with four kills and a block while Shannon Igielski (Streamwood, Ill/St. Edward) had three kills and a block. Setter Jillian Hoffman (Arlington Heights, Ill./Hersey) led the team defensively with five digs while Adriana Loiacono (Bartlett, Ill./South Elgin) went 8-of-8 serving with two aces.

"It's amazing how much winning the first game of a match can set the tone of a match," said Harper head coach Bob Vilsoet.

In the second set, the Hawks fell behind early but tied it at 13-13 before executing well for the victory. Bregenezer again led the way with four kills and two blocks while Lauren Sokolowski (Rolling Meadows, Ill./Rolling Meadows) put down three kills. Morgan Peterson (Roselle, Ill./Conant ) was 10-of-11 serving with an ace, and libero Meghan Chartier (Inverness, Ill./Buffalo Grove) totaled six digs. In the third set, Harper started out ahead and built a 20-11 lead on the way to victory.

"We got stronger and stronger in this match, making the right adjustments," Vilsoet said.

Bregenzer led the way with 11 kills in the match. Chartier tallied a team-high five aces in the service game and also notched a team-best 15 digs. Setter Lindsey Murphy (Lake in the Hills, Ill./Crystal Lake South) recorded 19 assists in the victory.

Harper vs. Oakton Community College

Harper could not pull out a match win against Oakton, losing in straight sets (24-26, 17-25, 21-25). The Hawks started the match strong with a 16-9 advantage, but the Raiders went on an 8-1 win run to tie it at 17-17. Harper took a slight lead at 23-21, but Oakton tied it again and went on to win.

"Winning that first game gave them momentum and confidence, and in our case, we began to make uncharacteristic, careless mistakes," Vilsoet said.

The two teams were locked in another tight battle in the second set with Oakton leading 18-16 before they pulled away for a 25-17 victory. The Hawks struggled in the service game in the third set, missing serves at key points in the game. In total, they missed 12 serves in the match.

Peterson led Harper with six kills while Mia Harper (Rolling Meadows, Ill./Rolling Meadows) had 12 digs. Both Murphy and Jillian Hoffman (Arlington Heights, Ill./Hersey) reached double figures in assists with 14 and 11, respectively.

The Hawks (5-2, 1-0 N4C) open their home schedule on Tuesday night against N4C opponent Joliet Junior College (4-7, 1-1 N4C). First serve is set for 6 PM.