By Mitch Blankespoor
ANGOLA, Ind. – After a five-set win at Olivet last night, the Hornets made an early trip to Hershey Hall on the campus of Trine University for a match with the Thunder. Kalamazoo fell in four sets by scores of 21-25, 25-16, 25-19, 25-17.
Kalamazoo fell behind early 10-3 on a service run from Trine's Erin Lewis. A kill from freshman outside hitter Kaela Van Til and a Trine attack error cut the Thunder lead to a single point. After a timeout from Trine head coach Jaime Wozniak, Trine would win the next two points pushing the lead back to three points. Then the Hornets came alive. K won nine of the next ten points to earn a set point at 24-19. The Thunder saved two set points, but a service error from Megan Verkamp gave K the first set.
In set two, Kalamazoo used two consecutive service aces from senior outside hitter Brittany Amor to win the first five points of the set. Trine, determined to not fall behind two sets to none, stormed back winning 14 of the next 19 points to take a 14-10 lead. Kalamazoo would cut the lead to a single point on two consecutive kills from senior right side Quinn McCormick and an attack error from Trine. The Hornets could get no closer. The Thunder ended the second set on a 12-3 run.
Kalamazoo fell behind early in the third set. A service run from junior setter Alex Gothard cut the Trine lead to 18-15, but consecutive kills from Taylor Rabel sealed the set victory for Trine.
Midway through the fourth set, Kalamazoo and Trine were tied at 11. The Thunder ended the set on a 14-6 run to clinch the match.
As a team, K hit a .177 clip for the match compared to .237 for Trine. Amor led the Hornets with 15 kills. Van Til added 10 kills while McCormick chipped in nine kills. Junior setter Alex Gothard dished out 33 assists and added nine digs.
Rebel led the victorious Thunder offensively with 20 kills on 37 attack attempts with two errors. Setter Courtney Searles dished out 43 assists.
Kalamazoo falls to 8-5 on the season and 4-2 in the MIAA. The Hornets return to action Sept. 25 when they travel to Holland, Mich., for a match with the Hope College Flying Dutch. The match is slated to start at 7:00 p.m.