WINCHESTER, Va. - Celebrating Senior Day on Sunday, the Shenandoah University women's volleyball team won a pair of exhibition victories over Montgomery College-Rockville and Richard Bland College in a tri-match.
Prior to the match against Richard Bland, the Hornets honored their four seniors
Hannah Hylton,
Amanda Schaffer,
Amber Shifflett, and
Samantha Shy.Â
MONTGOMERY-ROCKVILLE RECAP
Shenandoah opened the day's action with a sweep over Montgomery College, winning set scores of 25-16, 26-24, and 25-16.
The Hornets came out strong in the opening frame, hitting .156 as a team to secure a 25-16 victory. Montgomery mounted a fight in the second set, pushing SU to extra points in a frame that featured 13 tie scores and five lead changes. However, Shenandoah held firm to claim the set 26-24 before taking control in the third set, hitting a game-high .344 with 15 kills to complete the sweep.
Hannah Hylton fueled the attack for the Hornets, posting a game-high 12 kills on an efficient .455 hitting percentage while adding nine digs and three service aces. Ashlynn Spence provided strong support with 10 kills hitting .368, four service aces, and five digs.Â
The offensive cadence was orchestrated by the setting tandem of Susan Smith and Amanda Schaffer, who dished out 18 and 13 assists, respectively, while Samantha Shy anchored the back row with nine digs and a service ace. As a unit, Shenandoah hit .243 for the match with 42 total kills and 10 service aces.
RICHARD BLAND RECAP
In the second match of the tri-match, Shenandoah outlasted Richard Bland in a five-set thriller (25-19, 25-10, 19-25, 18-25, 15-10).
SU hit the ground running, taking the first set 25-19 while hitting .270. They dominated the second set 25-10, holding Richard Bland to a -.152 hitting percentage. Richard Bland responded by taking the third (25-19) and fourth (25-18) sets to force a decisive fifth frame. In the winner-take-all fifth set, Shenandoah regrouped to tally eight kills and pull away for a 15-10 victory.
Hylton put on a show in the finale, turning in a massive double-double with 22 kills and 21 digs to lead the offense and defense. Schaffer was equally dynamic, recording a double-double of her own with 40 assists and 10 digs while adding seven kills (.375 hitting percentage), three aces, and two blocks.
At the net, Spence chipped in seven kills, two solo blocks, two block assists, and five digs, while Shy paced the back-row defense with 12 digs. Shenandoah hit .161 overall with 55 kills, 10 aces, and 76 digs across five hard-fought sets.
UP NEXT
Shenandoah is home this Wednesday for a 6 p.m. ODAC showdown against Washington & Lee University.
#GoSUHornets
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