The Grand Rapids Community College women’s volleyball team swept Glen Oaks Community College and Lansing Community College on the second day of the Great Lakes B District Tournament.
With the win, the Raiders will compete against Muskegon Community College in their next matchup. The Jayhawks were able to defeat the Raiders in the first round of the regional tournament in four sets.
“I think we just had to focus on almost wiping that game from our memory,” said GRCC head coach Chip Will about the first round loss. “We did not play well. We made a ton of errors, Muskegon played really well, so they forced us into some errors, but it was probably one of the worst matches we have played all year, so we just kind of eliminated that match from our memory and really just focused on the next match and next set.”
The Raiders made a significant rebound after the first round loss as the team completely dominated the competition in the following day’s match ups.
“I thought we responded really well after not playing great the night before,” Will said. “To be able to come out today and pass well (and) dictate tempo of how we wanted to play, you never know after a tough loss how the kids are going to respond, especially in postseason time, so I was really pleased we bounced back and played pretty well on our side of the net.”
The first game the Raiders played was against Glen Oaks. The Raiders were able to easily secure the first two sets, 25-19 and 25-20, displaying great defense and good teamwork. In the third set, it was a tight battle throughout with no one pulling ahead. When the Raiders were down by one, 24-23, the Raiders were able to secure three-straight points from a kill from sophomore Kylie Oberlin and a combined block from sophomore Annie Holesinger and freshman Karissa Ferry to secure the 26-24 win and the match.
The Raiders were led by Holesinger who had 11 kills and five blocks along with freshman Audrey Torres who had eight kills, seven digs and two aces.
Following the win, the Raiders faced off against LCC. The Raiders completely dominated against the Stars, winning each set by an impressive margain, 25-18, 25-14 and 25-13.
Holesinger and Torres again led the team with Holesinger putting up 10 kills and five blocks and Torres earning 11 kills and 10 digs.
The Raiders will play a rematch against Muskegon Community College on the third day of the regional tournament on Saturday, Nov. 6 at 11 a.m. in Port Huron.
“I think the kids are ready to battle back after the loss against them,” Will said. “We know every time we play, it’s going to be tough… I think the kids have a little extra motivation after the loss from yesterday, so I know they are excited… I think it’s going to be a good match.”
