Eureka, ILL. -- On a day filled with history, Principia volleyball continued their best ever start to a season since 2006 and also saw head coach Mary Ann Sprague collect her 300th career win at Principia, becoming just the second ever Principia Athletics figure to achieve that mark.
The game during which that aforementioned 300th win happened in was Principia's first game of the day against Iowa Wesleyan. The Panthers were in complete control right out of the gates and the final result was never in doubt. It might not have been as clean as PC would have liked, but a 25-16, 25-14, 25-16 scoreline.
Sophia Hathaway opened the 1st set on a 7-0 serving run and immediately set the tone for the day, cementing the fact that PC would be as tough as ever to beat. And good serving would continue to be a theme throughout the entire Iowa Wesleyan match, as the Panthers racked up a season high 9 aces and were constantly able to keep the Tigers out of any semblance of an offensive rhythm.
In attack, Emily Tippetts led the way for Principia, smashing a team high 13 kills at a .305 hitting percentage. Tippetts recorded more than twice as many swings as any other Principia player in the match, and when asked why she said, "we've been working to create a faster, more intense offense which means running the middle more as well as…running a slide set when Devon is in the front row."
In an offense that has, up to this point, seen roughly 90% of its swings come from the outside, watching Tippetts boss the middle of the court today was refreshing and can be pointed to as a primary reason why Principia dominated the first match against Iowa Wesleyan.
Against Greenville, the narrative completely flipped and became all about the Panther defense.
Facing a diverse, lethal Greenville attack that features 5 players with more than 60 kills, PC needed its nationally ranked defense to step up in a big way. 62 crucial digs, 6 blocks, and a brilliant game in serve receive that featured only 4 errors, it seems fair to say that Principia's nationally lauded defense was up to the task.
Led by junior libero Mia Gill's 19 digs, the Panthers' (our Panthers, not Greenville's) back row held firm through all 5 sets. When asked what was done to neutralize the Greenville attack, sophomore defensive specialist Amanda Roberts commented that, "it was all about reading their shoulders and waiting in our low defensive base so that we could get underneath the ball and so that our front row had opportunities to swing."
"We pride ourselves in being a scrappy team that refuses to let the ball hit the floor" Roberts continued, "we get low and keep the ball flying."
That scrappy identity that the Panthers have fully taken on allowed them to pull out a thrilling 5 set victory over reigning SLIAC champions Greenville, giving Principia yet another signature win in what is turning into a truly special season.
After trading the first two sets, Greenville took control in the 3rd set and hammered their way to a 25-16 final score and a 2 sets to 1 advantage on what looked to be a reeling Principia group. However, showing the grit and fight that has become a hallmark of this season, Principia fought back in the 4th set and scraped out a tight 25-23 victory.
The set and game completely changed when sophomore setter Devon Marunde went back to serve for the Panthers with her team trailing 19-14 and desperately needing some momentum. Behind Marunde's crafty serving and some thunder from the killing right arm of junior captain Sophia Hathaway, Principia battled their way to a 20-19 lead and wouldn't look back from there.
The 5th set, as nerve racking as it seemed, was never in doubt for Principia. The Panthers jumped out to a 5-1 lead, further stretching that to 8-2 before watching Greenville claw back to a 10-8 deficit that had the entire gym on edge. But, yet again, Principia pulled together and closed the game on a 5-1 run to win the 5th set and snatch victory from what turned out to be a scintillating match.
Leading Principia's offense in the 2nd match of the day was Sophia Hathaway, clubbing a team high 21 kills, swinging at a .258 hitting percentage, and tallying the final kill of the game to put a cherry on top of a season defining win thus far for the Panthers.
They Said It:
-Â Â "On a scale from 1 to 10, today was a million. The synergy of the team was just so perfect." -Sarah Ungerleider
-Â Â "Tough competition, leaving it all out on the court and getting to love these ladies I'm so bless to call teammates, that's what it's all about." -Emily Tippetts
-Â Â "THAT WAS SO MUCH FUN" -Devon Marunde
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Up Next
On Tuesday, October 3rd, the Panthers head 20 minutes up the road from Elsah to take on Lewis & Clark Community College in a non-conference matchup at 6 PM.
