Box Score Elgin, IL:  This loss ended a 13-match win streak for over a decade against Elgin.  The last loss to Elgin goes way back to 2009 when Alex Mason (MH) and Libby Bedwell (setter) played.

In the first set, an uninspired Harper fell behind 1-5, but caught up quickly enough at 9-9, 10-10 and 11-11.  Harper fell behind badly again at 12-17 on the way to a 20-25 loss.  Abbie Greenberg (Schaumburg/Schaumburg H.S.) did have kills in this set. Setter Gabby Elbrecht (Owings, MD/Northern H.S.) had just 6 assists which isn't many, and typically an indicator of a team faltering.  Libero Alyssa Rodda (Inverness/Barrington H.S.) had 7 digs.  Ava Belluomini (Mount Prospect/Resurrection H.S>) was 7-7 serving. 

The second set started out similarly with a tie at 4-4;  Harper took a slim 8-5 lead, but Elgin knotted the score at 9-9, 10-10, 14-14 and 16-16 before gaining a slim edge at 20-22 and then another 20-25 win.  Natalia Smiech (Sleepy Hollow/Dundee-Crown H.S.) back to hitting had 5 kills; while Tess O'Gara (Chicago/Resurrection H.S.), back in the lineup had 4 kills, and Harper's only block-kill of the entire 5-set match.  Setter Eden Suh (Buffalo Grove/Buffalo Grove H.S.) in her college debut had a healthy 10 assists plus 4 digs in this loss.  Alyssa Rodda (Inverness/Barrington H.S.) added 5 more digs.  Jocelyn Mercado (Schaumburg/Schaumburg H.S.) was 4-4 serving with an ace.

In the third set, Harper re-swizzled the lineup and after ties at 3-3, 4-4, and 10-10, Harper took leads of 13-10, 16-11 and 19-14, on the way to a 25-20 win.  Alyssa Rodda (Inverness/Barrington H.S.) set and had 11 assists; Katie Hofmann (Des Plaines/Elk Grove H.S.) had 3 kills and Ava Belluomini (Mount Prospect/Resurrection H.S>) had 3 kills.  Cana Jones (Walton, IN/Lewis Cass H.S.), entering the match at libero had 5 digs. Natalia Smiech (Sleepy Hollow/Dundee-Crown H.S.) had 5 digs.  Natalia Smiech (Sleepy Hollow/Dundee-Crown H.S.) was 10-10 serving with an ace. Katie Hofmann (Des Plaines/Elk Grove H.S.) was 4-4 serving with an ace. 

In the fourth set, Harper sprinted ahead 5-0, and 9-1.  Elgin hung tight and caught up at 10-8… Harper took a 15-9 lead, and extended to 17-11 on the way to a 25-19 win.  Oddly, Harper only had 5 kills in this entire set.  Natalia Smiech (Sleepy Hollow/Dundee-Crown H.S.) was 6-6 serving with 2 aces.  Avay Belluomini was 4-4 serving with an ace.  Brianna Spetka (Elk Grove/Conant H.S.) was 4-5 serving with an ace. 

In the final, deciding set, Elgin took a major lead at 0-3 and then 1-7.  Harper didn't really come close to closing the gap at 4-10, 7-13 and an 8-15 loss.  Harper hit the ball out of bounds in that 5^th set 6 times, plus missed a late serve.  Harper had 6 hitting errors and a missed serve in this important deciding set.

Harper does get a chance to play Elgin again later in the season at Judson on September 22.