Cincinnati, OH – The 22nd ranked Heidelberg University volleyball team, under the guidance of veteran head coach Jason Miller, traveled to Cincinnati to compete in the 3rd Annual Charles Wrublewski Tournament hosted by the College of Mount St. Joseph. After the first day of competition the Berg is 2-0.
In their first game the Berg battled Thomas More College to a five set victory (25-18, 20-25, 15-25, 28-26, 15-11).
“There were ups and downs, but we’re a young team trying to work it out,” said Miller.
Offensively, senior middle hitter Marian Bevington (Celina/Parkway) led Heidelberg with 15 kills. Both junior Amber Welfle (Norwalk/St. Paul) and senior Jacki Street (Grafton/Midview) assisted Bevington by recording 13 kills each.
Senior setter Rachel Ferguson (Brighton Mich./Brighton) tallied 24 sets to go along with the 13 digs she collected. Junior setter Alexa Frank (Tiffin/Calvert) served up 20 sets to accompany Ferguson’s performance.
Defensively, libero Tessa Benanzer (Fort Loramie) led the team with 27 digs while Jamie Kluding (Norwalk/Monroeville) and Kristen Zumberger (Sidney/Fort Loramie) added 14 and 10 digs respectively.
In the second match of the day, Heidelberg squared off against Birmingham Southern College. Heidelberg defeated the Panthers in three straight sets (25-22, 25-17, 25-14).
Adding to a stellar performance in the first match, Bananzer recorded another 22 digs along with two aces against Birmingham Southern. Street helped out defensively, tallying eight digs while both Jamie Kluding and Grace Samenuk (Westlake) collected seven digs each.
“We went with a different line-up, got different looks and the team started to do the things they are supposed to do,” said Miller.
Offensively, Bevington led the Berg again with ten kills followed, closely by Welfle who recorded eight. Rachel Ferguson served up three aces for the Student Princes in the second match.
“Tomorrow, both teams we face are tough, but we will keep looking to improve,” commented Miller.
On the second day of action, the Berg will face off against Maryville College at 9:00 am, than battle the host College of Mount St. Joseph Lions at 1:00 pm.