Hawks Take Home Opener vs. Wolves

PALATINE, IL- The #1 ranked Harper College volleyball team defeated Joliet Junior College in Harper's home opener. With Building M under construction, the Hawks play their home matches at Robert Morris University.

In the first set on Tuesday, the Hawks were up 8-6 after an unusually long rally. Harper continued their offensive attack bringing the score to 16-11 when Joliet took a time out. The time-out appeared to be what the Wolves needed as they brought the Hawks lead down to one at 17-16. Joliet remained tough, staying within striking distance at 21-19 before Harper finally pulled away with a 25-20 set one victory after the "sluggish" start.

Set two looked more like the #1 Hawks as they led 8-5 before committing its first of only two hitting errors for the entire set. Harper extended their lead to 13-6 when Joliet called a time-out. Strong serve receiving and offense kept the Hawks ahead for the remainder of the set, finishing off a 25-13 win.

In set three, Harper found themselves in an unfamiliar position down 1-5 before Breanna Cullen (/Oregon) took over. Cullen's 10 service points in a row brought Harper ahead 11-5 before Joliet called another timeout. Harper was able to keep rolling after the stoppage in play, seeing leads to 13-6, 17-11, before taking set three 25-13 ending the match.

The Hawks took a well-rounded approach to continue their winning streak as they totaled 7 aces, 9 blocks, 45 digs, and 27 assists. Standouts were Ellie Burzlaff (/Harvest Christian) (9 kills, 1 aces, and 6 digs), Breanna Cullen (/Oregon) (6 kills, 2 aces, .5 blocks, 11 digs, and 1 assist), Sarah Udoni (/Palatine) (5 kills, 1.5 blocks), and Emily Huprich (/Elgin) (1 ace, 1.5 blocks, 5 digs, and 25 assists). Harper also received efficient attacking from Marielle Lugo (/Hoffman Estates) (12 of 14, 4 kills) and Mackenzie Bush (/Bartlett) (11 of 12, 4 kills). Burzlaff, Huprich, Cullen, and Ariana Chelini (/Crystal Lake South) posted strong service numbers, serving a combined 52 of 59 with 5 aces.

Head coach Bob Vilsoet saw encouraging signs from the team after bouncing back from a difficult set one win and having multiple players step up in key roles. "After a sluggish start, we fared much better in sets two and three. Gabby Fugle (/Wauconda) did a very nice job coming into game two as a hitter with some energy – she was 5-5 serving with an ace; plus another kill, 4 in play, no hitting errors, a rejection, a couple blocks, and a partridge in a pear tree. In set 3, Angelina Nichols (/Christian Liberty Academy) entered the match and had some nice spot-on passes which resulted in some very effective middle hit kills. We had just 2 hitting errors in the entire second game, and only three in the 3^rd game. Ellie Burzlaff (/Harvest Christian) led the way with 9 kills on 23 attempts and just one hitting error."

With the win, the Hawks moved to 7-2 overall and 1-0 in the N4C. Up next is the Kankakee Tri-Match on Saturday featuring Kankakee Community College and Kalamazoo Valley Community College.

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Players Mentioned

#2 Ariana Chelini: Libero; 5' 4"; Sophomore

#3 Emily Huprich: S; 5' 5"; Sophomore

#7 Ellie Burzlaff: RS; 5' 9"; Sophomore

#8 Marielle Lugo: OH; 5' 8"; Sophomore

#9 Breanna Cullen: OH; 5' 7"; Sophomore

#12 Gabby Fugle: OH; 5' 8"; Freshman

#14 Sarah Udoni: MH; 5' 10"; Sophomore

#16 Mackenzie Bush: MH; 5' 10"; Freshman

#20 Angelina Nichols: OH; 5' 7"; Freshman

Players Mentioned

#2 Ariana Chelini
: 5' 4"; Sophomore
: Libero

#3 Emily Huprich
: 5' 5"; Sophomore
: S

#7 Ellie Burzlaff
: 5' 9"; Sophomore
: RS

#8 Marielle Lugo
: 5' 8"; Sophomore
: OH

#9 Breanna Cullen
: 5' 7"; Sophomore
: OH

#12 Gabby Fugle
: 5' 8"; Freshman
: OH

#14 Sarah Udoni
: 5' 10"; Sophomore
: MH

#16 Mackenzie Bush
: 5' 10"; Freshman
: MH

#20 Angelina Nichols
: 5' 7"; Freshman
: OH