Coming off of a successful recent trip to northern Michigan, the Grand Rapids Community College volleyball team continued their hot streak with a dominant win over Muskegon Community College, with the Raiders being victorious in all three sets, winning each by more than 10 points. The win over Muskegon marked seven straight for GRCC, with the last five being clean sweeps, winning each match in three sets. With the victory, the Raiders moved to 9-2 on the season with a 6-0 record in conference play.
From the jump the Raiders continued their dominating run, winning the first set 25-15 to set the tone for the rest of the match. During the first set, GRCC had 11 kills to five errors on 28 total attacks, bringing their hitting percentage to .214% in comparison to Muskegon’s .071% hitting percentage in the first set.
Much like the first set, GRCC was able to comfortably take control in the second, winning the set 25-14 to put them one step closer to yet another win. The second set was even more efficient for the Raiders, with 12 kills and five errors on just 22 total attacks, the Raiders hitting percentage came out to .318%. GRCC held Muskegon to a .056% hitting percentage, their worst of the three sets.
The same story continued in the third set, as GRCC once again won the set 25-14, giving them a dominant victory over Muskegon. Despite Muskegon having their most efficient set with a .091% hitting percentage, it was not enough to hold back GRCC, who put up a .263% hitting percentage with nine kills and four errors on 19 attempts.
It was a strong afternoon for freshman Taylor Kik, who led the team with 16 of their 32 kills. Sophomores Lizzie MacIntosh and Ava Schultz each added four kills of their own to the team total. Out of 32 team assists, sophomore Carle Bruggema tallied on 16 and freshman Ava Tarsi added 11 of her own assists.
It was an impressive day serving the ball for the Raiders, putting up a season-high 19 aces against Muskegon. Freshman Cece Huizingh led the team in aces, scoring five, Bruggema also added four of her own to the total. The team also saw freshman Jersey VanderWall score three aces, which matched Muskegon’s whole team total.
After the third set concluded Tuesday night, it marked the Raiders 16th consecutive set win, dating back to Sept. 17 against Delta College.
A big week is ahead for the Raiders. The team will play four games this upcoming weekend, two on Saturday and two on Sunday, at the Ford Fieldhouse for the Raider Challenge. The team will then play again on Tuesday, Oct. 8 against Delta College at home, and once again on Thursday Oct. 10 against Montcalm Community College for the homecoming game. It will be a busy week that will play an important factor in how the Raiders season ends up.
