Rio Grande Sports Information
MISHAWAKA, Ind. - The University of Rio Grande women's volleyball team opened their 2024 schedule with a split on Saturday, rallyiing to defeat non-conference tri-match host Bethel (Ind.) in five sets before falling to Concordia (Mich.) in four sets at Gates Gymnasium.
The RedStorm roared back from a big deficit in their first match against the host Pilots to post a 19-25, 24-26, 25-19, 27-25, 15-8 victory, while match two finished in a 25-16, 22-25, 25-23, 25-21 loss to the Cardinals.
After Rio rallied to force the deciding set in the opener, the RedStorm enjoyed their most efficient attack percentage when they needed it most with a .333 mark (5 kills, 2 errors, 9 swings) in the final stanza.
Bethel, on the other hand, had one more error (5) than it did kills (4) over 13 swings in the fifth set.
Rio Grande finished the match with a .235 swing percentage and was led by the trio of sophomore Kelli Stewart (Waverly, OH), senior Amanda Rarick (Canal Winchester, OH) and junior Olivia Smith (Bainbridge, OH).
Stewart finished with a match-best 19 kills, while Rarick and Smith added 13 and 12 kills, respectively. Smith also had 10 digs.
Freshman Elle McLoughlin (Zanesville, OH) shined in her debut with the RedStorm, tallying 38 assists, 16 digs, a solo block and five block assists.
Sophomore Jenna Harrison (Gallipolis, OH) led Rio with 20 digs, while senior Jordan Brooks (Reynoldsburg, OH) had a solo block and six block assists in the win.
Maddy Payne had 16 kills in the loss for Bethel, while Liberty Pierson and Reanna Brown had 13 assists each and Haley Biedenbach had 10 assists of her own. Brown and Biedenbach also had three service aces each.
Paige Hickey had 11 digs to pace the Pilots, while Payne, Taylor Delp and Beyana Bosket all had three block assists.
In the nightcap, Rio posted a win in set two to even the match, but Concordia pulled away in both set three and four to secure the victory.
The RedStorm hit just .056 in the loss, with 40 kills and 33 errors over 125 attacks.
Stewart and Rarick again led the way with 15 and 11 kills, respectively, while Harrison had 10 digs and McLoughlin tallied 31 assists.
Sophomore McKenna Diedrich (Pickerington, OH) contributed one solo block and four block assists for Rio.
Concordia, which finished with a .149 swing percentage, was led by Breann June's 16 kills.
Emiline Wood had 11 digs for the Cardinals, while Emma Leinberger and Jillian Kendrick added 13 and 12 assists, respectively, and Jacey Powell finished with a pair of solo blocks and one block assist.
Rio Grande returns to action on Friday afternoon when it faces Tennessee Wesleyan and Union Commonwealth (Ky.) in the opening round of the Milligan Mountain Madness in Milligan, Tenn.
