Belles Sweep Comets

Box Score

  • Katie Hecklinski had a match-high 17 kills while adding 10 digs.
  • Alexis Grady (30 assists, 11 digs) and Clare McMillan (17 assists, 15 digs) added double-doubles.
  • Meaghan Gibbons chipped in 15 kills, and McKenzie Todd led all players with 17 digs.

NOTRE DAME, Ind. - The Saint Mary's volleyball swept their way to a 3-0, (25-20, 25-17, 25-20) conference win over Olivet on Tuesday.

Katie Hecklinski hits one of her 17 kills on the night.
Katie Hecklinski hits one of her
17 kills on the night.
In the first set, the Belles broke open a 15-15 match with a 7-2 scoring spurt to gain a 22-17 advantage against the Comets. Katie Hecklinski put down a pair of kills, Rachel Bonek had a kill and a solo block, Colleen Kilgallon picked up a kill, and the Belles took advantage of a pair of Olivet mistakes in what proved to be the turning point of the set.

Holding on to a 12-10 lead in the second set, Saint Mary's put five consecutive points on the scoreboard to make it a 17-10 advantage. This time, it was Meaghan Gibbons and Alexis Grady with the kills while Leah Buck and Grady teamed up for a double block during the run. Olivet pulled within four points on three different occasions down the stretch, but the Belles did not allow the Comets to put together any runs to make it any closer as Saint Mary's went up two sets to none with the 25-17 win.

The Comets went on a tear early in the third set and won six of seven points to gain a 13-8 lead as the Belles called timeout to try to stop the momentum. After that timeout, Saint Mary's got kills from Colleen Kilgallon and Katie Hecklinski to help get right back into the thick of things. Olivet still clung to the lead at 15-12 a few moments later, but the Belles swayed both the momentum and the score back in their favor after taking eight of the next nine points to go up 20-16. The Comets pulled within 22-20 after a pair of kills, but the Belles closed out the win with two kills and an Olivet error for the 25-20 final.

As a team, the Belles hit an impressive .306 on the night with 51 kills and just 14 errors on 121 attempts. It is the first time since the three-set sweep of Kalamazoo at home that the Belles posted an attack percentage above .300 this season.

Katie Hecklinski had a match-high 17 kills and posted a .368 attack percentage while chipping in 10 digs. Meaghan Gibbons added 15 digs, and McKenzie Todd led all players in the match with 17 digs. Alexis Grady had 30 assists and 11 digs while Clare McMillan also posted a double-double with 17 assists and 15 digs. Rachel Bonek tallied a .571 attack percentage with five kills on just seven attempts.

The Belles (14-11, 7-7 MIAA) have their final home match of the season on Friday, October 30 when they host Alma for a 7:00 p.m. MIAA match. The two members of the senior class - Angela Bukur and Katie Hecklinski - will be recognized after the conclusion of the match.

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