WISCONSIN DELLS, Wis. – The Harper College volleyball team opens its 2015 season at the 2015 Battle For The Dells Junior College Tournament hosted by South Suburban College over the weekend. The seventh-ranked Hawks posted a 2-2 record in four matches at the tournament, including a win over a top-10 foe.

Harper vs. No. 1 (D2) Parkland College

Facing the top-ranked team in the nation at the NJCAA Div. II level posed quite a challenge to start the season. However, the Hawks hung tough with Parkland on Saturday morning before eventually losing in four sets (22-25, 25-18, 16-25, 18-25).

"We played very solid defense with excellent service receptions. But we did manage to play well and win one of the four sets," said Harper head coach Bob Vilsoet.

As a team, Harper served an excellent match, going 79-of-81 (98 percent) with five aces. Middle hitter Daniele Sortino (Elk Grove Village, Ill. /Elk Grove) was 17-of-17 with two aces and also added eight kills in the match.

In the set the Hawks won, the second set, they took a commanding 14-5 lead before the Jaguars cut the lead to 18-14. The Hawks closed on a 7-4 run to end the game. Jillian Hoffman (Arlington Heights, Ill./Hersey) paced the Hawks with four kills in the set, and Katelyn Sommers (/Buffalo Grove) tallied six digs.

For the match, Sortino, Shannon Igielski (Streamwood, Ill/St. Edward), and Sarah Bergrren each put down eight kills. Sommers notched a double-double with 29 assists to go along with 17 digs.

"Today proved we can play with the best of them. There was a lot of cohesion in the way that we played this early in the season," Vilsoet said.

Harper vs. Jackson College

Despite dropping the first set to the Jets, the Hawks rebounded to win three straight sets and capture their first match of the year, 23-25, 25-23, 25-18, 25-22.

Despite leading 20-15 in the first set, Jackson rallied, scoring five of the final six points to pick up a narrow victory. Harper came back strong in the second set, but the Jets continued to play well themselves. Tied at 21-21, the Hawks pulled ahead and picked up a victory to even the match at 1-1. Igielski had five kills in the set, and Hoffman and Chartier had five digs apiece.

Trailing for the first part of the third set, the Hawks closed on a 12-3 run to take a 2-1 lead in the match. Sommers' serving was key to the set as she scored five straight points, including three aces in a row.

In another tightly contested set, Harper managed to pull ahead at the end for a 25-22 win. Sommers added 12 more assists, and the Hawks were sharp defensively as libero Kayla Mayer (/Wauconda) led the defense with five digs.

Igielski paced the attack with 12 kills. Sommers (23-of-23, six aces) and Mayer (20-of-21, four aces) were both strong in the service game, and Berggren provided three key blocks. On the defensive end, the team got strong contributions from several players, led by Mayer (17 digs) and Hannah Moore (/Schaumburg) (15 digs).

Harper vs. No. 6 Rochester Community and Technical College

Facing their first top-10 NJCAA Div. III of the season, the Hawks did not disappoint with a straight sets victory over the Yellowjackets (26-24, 25-8, 25-17).

In the first set, Harper trailed for most of it before scoring four of the final five points to pick up the win. Igelski put down a team-high seven kills while Sommers handed out 15 asssits and Chartier paced the defense with 10 digs.

The Hawks used the momentum from a tight first set victory and cruised for the entire second set en route to a 25-8 victory. Adriana Loiacono (Bartlett, Ill./South Elgin) led the attack with four kills.

Harper raced out to an early 5-0 lead over Rochester in the third set, but the Yellowjackets tied it up at 12-12. The Hawks finished the match on a 13-5 run to defeat sixth-ranked Rochester. Hoffman totaled seven digs while Meyer served a strong set.

Igielski led the team in the match with 15 kills while Moore was a perfect 12-of-12 serving with two aces. Chartier had a team-best 23 digs, and Sommers posted a double-double of 11 digs and 37 assists.

"I'm not sure we can play any better. I was very impressed," Vilsoet said. "This team is showing it can play. It was obvious Harper wanted this match very badly."

Harper vs. Iowa Lakes Community College

The Hawks came up short in the final match of the weekend, losing in four sets to the Lakers, 22-25, 17-25, 25-17, 24-26. Locked in a 17-17 tie in the first set, Iowa Lakes closed the set strong to gain a 1-0 edge.

The Lakers controlled much of the second set as well to take a commanding 2-0 lead in the match. In the third set, Harper switched up its lineup, and it paid off as the Hawks built up a big lead on the way to a win.

The fourth set looked promising as well as Harper led throughout and held a 22-17 edge. The Hawks turned in some inconsistent swings down the stretch, allowing Iowa Lakes to tie the match up at 24-24 and score the final two points to close it out.

Sortino tallied 14 kills in the match to lead the Hawks while Sommers was a perfect 21-of-21 serving with an ace. Sommers also got her fourth double-double in as many matches with 18 digs and 39 assists, and Chartier recorded a team-best 29 digs.

Thoughts from Head Coach Bob Vilsoet

"Harper College played very well this weekend. It was fun playing teams from four different states this weekend, teams that were very strong and teams that we don't normally face year-to-year. Harper served 95 percent for the tournament, and setter Katelyn Sommers (/Buffalo Grove) had four consecutive double-doubles to start the season."

Up Next

The Hawks host the Harper College Tri-Match on Friday. Harper plays Lincoln College at 2 PM and College of DuPage at 6 PM. For the full schedule for Friday, click here.