By Nicholas Huenefeld/Owens Sports Information
Toledo, OH---The No. 5 Express volleyball team went 7-1 this past week and head coach Sonny Lewis earned his 400th career win at Owens in the process.
The week started with a 25-16, 25-11, 25-15 defeat of conference foe Edison State Community College in Piqua, Ohio on Wednesday.
Brittany Egbert (Hopewell-Loudon/Fostoria, Ohio) had 11 kills and Emily Crowell (Parkway/Rockford, Ohio) had 10 to lead the Express in that category. Egbert added three aces and four assisted blocks. Erin Schatzle (Monroe/Monroe, Mich.) and Molly Hilfinger (Anthony Wayne/Whitehouse, Ohio) led the team in assists with 18 and 16, respectively. Ellie Comes (Southview/Sylvania, Ohio) led the team with 23 digs.
The win moved the Express to 9-0 in the Ohio Community College Athletic Conference (OCCAC) and helped maintain a firm grip on sole possession of first place.
Following their trip to Edison State, Owens traveled to Wisconsin to participate in the Wisconsin Dells Invitational Thursday-Saturday.
The Express opened on Thursday with an 11-25, 25-16, 25-16, 17-25, 15-12 win over NJCAA Division III No. 9-ranked Harper College.
Egbert led in kills with 12, while Crowell and Allison Seifker (Monroeville/Norwalk, Ohio) had nine apiece. Schatzle had a team best 23 assists and five aces, while Hilfinger added 15 assists. Comes had a team high 23 digs. In addition to her 12 kills, Egbert had a team high seven assisted blocks.
The Express closed Thursday's action with a 25-10, 25-19, 25-9 sweep of South Suburban College.
Egbert led in kills, once again, with 11, while Seifker and Julia Haupricht (Central Catholic/Toledo, Ohio) had nine apiece. Schatzle led the team with three aces and 18 assists. Hilfinger added 16 assists, and Alyssa Pelish (Central Catholic/Toledo, Ohio) had a team-high 12 digs.
The Express then opened Friday with a 25-12, 25-20, 25-10 sweep of No. 23-ranked Des Moines Area Community College.
Crowell led the team in kills with seven, while Egbert and Schatzle had five apiece. Four players had two aces each, while Schatzle and Hilfinger had a team best 13 assists. Comes led the team in digs with 12, while three others had eight each. Haupricht led the team with three assisted blocks.
Owens then defeated No. 20-ranked Carl Sandburg College in its second match on Friday by a score of 24-26, 25-10, 25-16, 25-16. The match marked the 400th win for head coach Sonny Lewis. He is now 402-132 at Owens following all the matches this week.
Crowell led the team with 14 kills, while Egbert had 13 and Haupricht had 12. Schatzle and Hilfinger were neck and neck for the team lead in assists with 23 and 22, respectively. Comes had a team high in digs with 28, while Schatzle and Haupricht had 12 each.
The Express suffered their only defeat of the week in the final match of Friday against No. 6-ranked Iowa Lakes Community College by a score of 22-25, 16-25, 15-25.
Egbert had a team-high 10 kills, while Crowell had eight. Schatzle and Hilfinger led in assists with 14 and 13, respectively, while Comes led in digs with 22.
The Express closed the week with two strong wins over the College of Lake County and No. 11-ranked Kirkwood College.
In the 25-6, 25-10, 25-18 win over Lake County, Egbert had a team high 12 kills, while Haupricht added seven. Schatzle had a team best three aces, while Hilfinger led the team with 18 assists. Comes had a team high 18 digs, while Brandi Schimming (Genoa/Genoa, Ohio) added 10 digs.
In the 27-25, 25-23, 25-14 win over Kirkwood, Crowell had a team-high 11 kills, while Egbert added nine. Hilfinger led in assists with 19. Schatzle had a team high four aces and added 16 assists. Comes led the team in digs with 23, while Crowell had 14.
The Express are now 36-3 (9-0 OCCAC). Their next match is Wednesday in Kirtland, Ohio against OCCAC opponent Lakeland Community College at 6 p.m. They have three matches left in the conference in a quest for a perfect record. The team's next home matches are Saturday against Macomb Community College and Jackson Community College beginning at 11 a.m.