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The No. 9-ranked Owens Community College volleyball team opened its season in dominating fashion in the Central Ohio Invitational with three wins over Iowa Central C.C. (25-21, 25-12, 25-20), Schoolcraft College (25-13, 25-20, 25-13), and No. 25-ranked Genesee C.C. (25-13, 25-7, 25-10).
Against Iowa Central, three players led the Express in kills with seven — Alyssa Meis (Genoa), Emily Crowell (Rockford Parkway) and Allison Seifker (Monroeville). Ellie Comes (Sylvania Southview) led the way with digs as she had 20, and Erin Schatzle (Monroe, Mich.) led the team with 16 assists.
Against Schoolcraft, Brittany Egbert (Hopewell-Loudon) led the team with nine kills, while Julia Haupricht (Central Catholic) added seven of her own. Comes, once again, led the team in digs with 19, while Schatzle led with 17 assists.
Against No. 25-ranked Genesee, Egbert smashed 10 kills, while Whitney Hoodlebrink (Eastwood) and Seifker each added six. For the third straight match, Comes led in digs with 14, and Molly Hilfinger (Anthony Wayne/) had a team-leading 21 assists with three aces.
The No. 9-ranked Express volleyball team continued to roll in the Central Ohio Invitational as they picked up two more wins to begin the season 5-0.
In their first match of the day, Owens defeated St. Clair County C.C. 25-7, 25-9, 25-16. Following that, they received a battle from Macomb C.C., but still won in straight sets 25-21, 25-17, 25-19.
Leaders against Macomb were: Crowell with two aces, Egbert with 12 kills, Haupricht with nine kills, Schatzle with 25 assists, and Comes with 13 digs. As a team, Owens had a hitting efficiency of .315 against Macomb.
For the weekend, Egbert stood out statistically with 46 kills, 14 assists and two solo blocks. Haupricht added 35 kills, Hoodlebrink had 27 kills, Comes had 80 digs, and Schatzle had 30 digs — all are weekend totals. As a team, the Express hit .335 over that stretch.
Over the first five matches, the Express did not drop a set. The Express are 6-1 heading into last weekend’s Owens Invitational.
The Express volleyball team split a pair of matches against No. 19 Oakland C.C. and No. 29 Muskegon C.C.
In the first match against Oakland, Owens struggled early on and dropped the first set 25-12. In the second game, the Express were down by five or six most of the way — including an early 5-0 deficit, but came back to take a thrilling 28-26 win. However, Oakland won the next two games 25-16 and 25-20 to take the match.
Following that, the Express bounced back strong with a straight set win over No. 29 Muskegon 27-25, 25-16, 25-21.
Egbert led the Express with 19 kills, while Crowell wasn't far behind with 16. Seifker had 15, Hoodlebrink had 14 and Haupricht had 12. Crowell finished with a team-high three aces, while Schatzle had two.
Comes once again led the way in digs with 38, while Hilfinger had 17. Egbert contributed 16, while Haupricht and Schatzle had 13 each. Hoodlebrink also led the team with 3½ blocks, while Haupricht had three.
National volleyball tourney
Owens has been selected among community colleges nationwide to serve as host venue for the 2011-13 NJCAA Division II Women’s Volleyball National Championship Tournament.
The college has hosted the national championship tournament on seven previous occasions. Owens served as the host site for the NJCAA Division II Women’s Volleyball National Championship Tournament from 2001-04 and the NJCAA Division III Women’s Volleyball National Championship Tournament from 1998-2000.
“Owens Community College is honored to be chosen by the NJCAA to host the Division II Women’s Volleyball National Championship Tournament for the next three years,” said Chris Giordano, Owens Dean of Student Life. “The College has a long and proud history of academic and athletic excellence in women’s volleyball and we look forward to welcoming some of the country’s finest programs and community colleges to Northwest Ohio for the chance to compete for a national championship.”
This year’s national tournament will take place Nov. 17-19. The top 16 teams from across the country will compete in the double elimination consolation tournament.
Owens women’s volleyball is led by Coach Sonny Lewis. The Express ended their 2010 season with a 42-9 overall record and finished 11-1 (first place) in the OCCAC regular season standings. Owens has now won 10 out of the last 11 OCCAC regular season championships. Lewis’ squad also was ranked No. 11 in the final NJCAA Division II volleyball regular season poll.
In addition, Owens’ volleyball team advanced to its second NJCAA Division II National Championship tournament where they finished 11 among 16 participating intercollegiate teams. The Express also participated in five Division III national tournaments and finished third in 1998, 1999 and 2000.
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