BLOOMINGTON, Ill. -- Rose-Hulman Institute of Technology gave a strong battle to No. 19 ranked Illinois Wesleyan University before falling to two of the top NCAA Division III volleyball programs in Illinois on Friday.
In the opener, Illinois Wesleyan defeated the Fightin' Engineers 25-22, 21-25, 25-22, 25-20 in a tightly contested match.
Freshman Grace Beach led the Rose-Hulman offense with 14 kills. Marissa Gollnick and Bailey MacInnis contributed nine kills each. Katie Orbeta provided a team-high 23 assists, and Alison Rogozinski reached double figures with 11.
Defensively, Gabi Razma led the back row with 25 digs. Rogozinski had 13 digs, Orbeta 11 and MacInnis 10. Mackenzie Gossard led the blocking attack wtih four block assists.
In the nightcap, receiving votes Chicago defeated Rose-Hulman by a 25-10, 25-23, 25-22 margin. Beach again led the offense with 11 kills and MacInnis added eight. Orbeta recorded 18 assists and was joined in double figures by Rogozinski wtih 12.
Razma had 16 digs against the Maroons, and Gossard had a team-high one solo block and one assist. Rose-Hulman stands 9-7 on the season.
Below are pre-match notes for Saturday's contests. In-match coverage will not be provided by the host institution for the remainder of the weekend.
Saturday's Opponents: #8 Millikin Big Blue (9-1) & #25 Cornell College Rams (11-2)
* Millikin has moved into the AVCA national top 10 after a 9-1 start, including a win at No. 7 ranked Claremont-Mudd-Scripps.
* The Big Blue won their first six matches and enter the IWU Invitational with three straight wins.
* Erin Syversen (143) and Alora Goodey (136) are over 100 kills so far this season for a team hitting .253.
* Cornell College has won six straight matches to enter the AVCA Top 25.
* The Rams defeated teams ranked No. 3 (Washington U.) and No. 20 (Hendrix) at the time during the Washington U. Invitational.
* Libby Schnoor (174), Nicole Ciari (117) and Diamond Boyd (116) each have more than 100 kills for Cornell.
