Box Score

Palatine, Ill- It certainly is not easy to get a win on the road against a ranked opponent, but the No. 1 ranked Harper College volleyball team did just that on Thursday night. To make things even tougher, the Hawks had already beaten their opponent, McHenry County College, once this year and dropped the first set by twelve points.

The unflappable Hawks battled back to win the match in five sets to continue what has been the most memorable season in Harper volleyball history. The Hawks now stand at 31-1 on the season.

Harper never got it going in the first set trailing 1-6 early on and 7-16 just a little bit later. The set would finish 13-25 putting Harper down a set and in a tough hole to climb out of against a ranked opponent.

Climb out of that hole they did, however, as the Hawks stormed out to a 5-0 lead in the second set and gained a 22-17 advantage before closing the set out 25-20. Ellie Burzlaff (/Harvest Christian) had six kills for the Hawks in the set and Katelyn Sommers (/Buffalo Grove) set up the attack with 13 assists.

Still, the hosts did not go down without a fight earning a 25-22 win in the third set.

The Hawks turned around and took the fourth set, 25-15, behind strong defensive player from Kayla Mayer (/Wauconda) (5 digs) and Ariana Chelini (/Crystal Lake South) (5 digs). Katelyn Sommers (/Buffalo Grove) was 8-8 in the service game with two aces.

The winner-take-all fifth set never got close as the Hawks raced to a 15-6 win in the set and the match.
Next up for the Hawks is a Tri-Match at South Suburban on Oct. 15. The Hawks battle Elgin Community College, Illinois Valley Community College, and South Suburban College.