LAKE FOREST, ILL. — The Concordia University Chicago women's volleyball team traveled to Lake Forest College today for a nightcap match-up. In this non-conference game, the Cougars were able to defeat the Foresters with a score of 3-1.
INSIDE THE BOX SCORE:
-
Grace Heywood (Northbrook, Ill.) led the offense with 18 kills, Katie Stonich (Sadieville, Ky.) was right behind her with 16.
-
Continuing her impressive assist numbers, Isabelle Vernengo (Plainfield, Ind.) produced 37 assists on the night.
-
Aiding the Cougars to a victory, Julia Beers (Mishawaka, Ind.) had 6 service aces and 14 digs, leading the team in both categories.
The first set was a back and forth battle as the Cougars and Foresters went point-for-point. Heywood came out with two kills to help take the lead, 8-7. Stonich decided to join the party, as she recorded back to back kills to bring the score to 11-10. As this back and forth dance continued, the Cougars looked for a way to gain momentum in the first set. Sophie Kovachevich (Huntley, Ill.) helped to further the lead with a string of serves, including a service ace. With a good lead intact, Stonich smacked down three more consecutive kills and took set one, 25-21.
Moving into the second set, the Cougars had the momentum in their favor. However, the Foresters would soon find their way back into this game. After a 4-0 start for CUC, Lake Forest began to chip away at the score. With another back and forth rally, McKayla LeVoy (Kankakee, Ill.) was able to put down a big block and get the Cougars within one, with a score of 11-12. Vernengo then began a streak of serves where the Foresters were not able to handle the ball, taking the lead 19-17. Ultimately, they fell in set two, 24-26, but were ready for a comeback.
Set three started off with a string of Heywood kills to make it 6-3, in favor of the Cougars. Benefitting from the Foresters' mistakes, Vernengo had a long string of serves, making the score 12-10. Beers then got a chance for some service aces as she helped pull away, 17-11. After some timely kills from Heywood and Lili Hunt (Greenfield, Ind.), CUC took set three with a score of 25-18.
The Cougars were fired up going into set four, as Kovachevich and Stonich teamed up to get a lead of 5-1. Beers, again, was dominant in her serves as she continued with a long string of points, which included two aces. With a score of 18-11, Kate Foley (Milwaukee, Wis.), Heywood, and Vernengo nailed in the win as they each produced a kill. Taking set four with a score of 25-19, the Cougars beat the Foresters, 3-1.
CUC women's volleyball will host their home opener, Tuesday, as they take on Dominican. This Division Street Rivalry game will be held at 7 p.m. Links to coverage can be found at cucougars.com/coverage.
