Volleyball: Lady Jackets surprise Ashland in 3 sets

By Danielle Cherry

Coming off its five-set victory against Ohio Dominican University, Cedarville had 24 hours to recover before they played a team undefeated in the GMAC: Ashland University.

The Lady Jackets dialed in their focus, took advantage of an off night by Ashland, and upset the Eagles in three sets, 25-19, 25-21, 25-15 for their third straight win.

The Jackets were consistent in their play, with the back row being ever steady coming off of their come-from-behind victory last night. The focus was narrow as Cedarville set its sights not on defeating Ashland, but on keeping their side of the court clean and crisp. 

Set one the Jackets took an early lead with Madelyn Hensley’s cross-court swings pelting the Eagles’ libero with balls she couldn’t handle. 

“We took it to them, we stayed focused on our side of the net. We did our job and we played with the level that we know we can play,” said head coach Greg Smith. 

Everyone on the court played their role and stayed in their line. There was no one standout player, showing the Jackets’ unity across the court, even from the bench. With great set balls, good attack recoveries and pace-changing attacks, Cedarville presented a cohesive attack that threw off Ashland’s sporadic charges for the lead. 

With the earlier set victory, the Jackets laid off the gas coming into set two to fall behind. For every ball the Lady Jackets earned with a tough kill or a tricky tip, Ashland earned by sitting back and watching while Cedarville handed the points to them with serves hitting the net seven times in. 

Tumultuous though it felt, Sienna Hanson and Allie Pilat responded by swinging boldly, down the line and into the deep corners. Despite putting up solid blocks, Ashland’s balls kept slicing through the gap to Cedarville’s victory ebbing away.

From the side of the court the call was heard to pick up the pace and change the energy on the court and the Jackets zeroed in. The gap that they gave to the Eagles closed as Cedarville took care of timing and kept up talking on every ball no matter if it was obviously in or out. 

“I loved the effort that we had and how hard we played,” Smith said. 

It was clear that something on Ashland’s side wasn’t going right, with easily set balls never getting a hitter on them as they stood and watched it drop. Even though Ashland wasn’t playing at its normal pace, Cedarville didn’t let it slow them down.  

“For us to just methodically go about our business, it was a really good sight to see,” Smith said. 

Coming in 11-0 in conference play and only losing to two teams throughout the season, Ashland is known as a team that brings a clean three-set sweep to all those who oppose them. Facing Cedarville for the first time, the momentum off of the Jackets’ Ohio Dominican victory gave them an edge the Eagles never saw coming. 

Every ball brought a fight, rallies sending balls shooting to the ceiling, with Jackets tracking them all the way into their open arms. Set three showed the true momentum Cedarville was bringing, with the gap between Ashland and the Jackets keeping a consistent five-point lead. 

Ending ahead by 10 points, 25-15, the one-sided mindset from Cedarville brought them to the victory. There were so many moments where an air of cockiness could have overtaken the Jackets, but they didn’t let unnatural play from Ashland change their pace — rather they attacked at every opportunity they could. 

Beating Ashland ahead of the annual Midwestern Region Volleyball Crossover Tournament gives Cedarville’s postseason rankings ahead of the GMAC tournament a competitive edge. 

Rising to the top Cedarville is in first place in the South Division at 7-2 (9-8 overall). Their standings shift the Crossover Tournament’s pool play matchups. Now because of their victory over Ashland, Cedarville’s matchups will be competitively advantageous.

“I think the belief started last week with Thomas More and how clean we played,” Smith said. 

Since Homecoming the Jackets have won every game they have played, keeping up with the consistent crisp communication and undeniable hunger to chase after every ball. Cedarville didn’t change their game for Ashland, rather the Jackets kept their heads down and played the way they know how to play. 

Adapting to strange balls being thrown over and inconsistent play from Ashland, Cedarville didn’t let the slower pace from the Eagles turn down their momentum. With the continuing win-streak ahead of the Crossover Tournament, Cedarville’s trust and belief in their ability might just give them an edge teams who have already played them are not expecting. 

Danielle Cherry is a junior communication major and is Assistant editor and writer for A&E and passionate writer for Sports. She is a Missionary Kid from Germany and seriously considers why other teams bother trying to dig up Hensley’s cross court swings.