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Heading into Friday night's (Oct. 23) match between #24 Grand Valley State and Hillsdale, the two teams were tied in the GLIAC standings, but the Lakers got the best of the Chargers with a 3-0 sweep in the Fieldhouse Arena. GVSU won by straight set scores of 25-17, 25-17, and 25-14 in one of the team's best offensive outputs of the season.

The win pushes the Lakers to a 14-7 overall record and a 8-2 mark in conference play. GVSU has also won its last eight home matches, improving to 8-1 inside the friendly confines of the Fieldhouse Arena. Hillsdale drops to 15-5 on the year and 7-3 in league action.

For the match, Grand Valley State hit .317 as a team - including a plus .300-mark in all three sets - and registered 50 kills and just 11 attack errors. The Laker defense was again superb, limiting Hillsdale to just a .077 hitting percentage and owning leads in both digs (65-56) and total blocks (8-4). Furthermore, for the third time this season, GVSU did not allow a service ace, while registering a pair of its own.

Seniors Jessica Majerle, Kaleigh Lound, Betsy Ronda, and Taylor Shomin led the way on Friday night - both offensively and defensively. Majerle led all players with 11 kills, hit .348, and combined for a pair of blocks. Lound did not commit a hitting error, provided eight kills, hit .471, and recorded three rejections. Ronda picked up a match-best 23 digs, but also added nine kills (and just one error) for a .421 percentage, while also totaling two blocks. Shomin also notched double-digits in digs, adding 13 pick-ups and one of the team's two aces.

From a 4-4 tie in the opening set, GVSU began to take control. Four straight kills from senior Kourtney Wolters, freshman Shannon Winicki, Ronda, and freshman Staci Brower put the Lakers ahead 8-4 and the team never looked back. Kills from Lound and Brower made the score 15-9 and prompted a Hillsdale timeout. Brower put down back-to-back kills and a solo block to up the score to 20-13. Ahead 23-17, Brower combined with Majerle for a block and put away another kill to end the frame. In the first set, Brower took eight swings and provided seven kills, to go with three total blocks.

The Lakers carried that momentum into set two, opening up a 10-2 advantage, including a pair of kills from Wolters. Hillsdale chipped away and made the set tighter at 14-10 before sophomore setter Katie Olson handed out three straight assists on kills to Lound, Wolters, and Majerle. The 17-10 lead would be enough cushion, as Ronda's late solo block and kill closed the second set. It was GVSU's lowest hitting percentage in a set on the evening and it was still a .308 mark with 16 kills.

Hillsdale scored the first two points of set three, but the Lakers answered with a 9-2 run, finishing with a Wolters solo rejection and a kill from freshman setter Taylor Stewart. Similar to set two, the Lakers led 14-9 and then tallied four straight points - three coming on Charger errors - to move ahead 18-9. Lound later followed with a kill, Shomin served up an ace, and Majerle added back-to-back putaways to up the score to 22-10. Winicki and Ronda finished out the sweep with consecutive kills for the win.

Brower totaled nine kills, four digs, three blocks, and hit .333 in the contest, while fellow freshman Winicki added five kills. Wolters recorded seven digs, six kills, two blocks, and an ace. Olson handed out 24 assists and six digs, while Stewart supplied 18 assists, six digs, and a pair of kills.

Saturday is the team's annual Alumni Day celebration, as many past players will be in attendance as the Lakers take on Findlay at 4:00 p.m. The Oilers entered Friday night's match at Ferris State with an 8-1 conference record, but fell by a 3-0 sweep to the Bulldogs. Both teams will enter Saturday's match with 8-2 GLIAC records. Also be honored during the match will be the 2005 National Championship team, the first woman's sport at Grand Valley State to capture a national title.