MADISON, WISC. - Hosting their second triangular in as many weeks, the Madison College volleyball team earned wins over visiting Triton College and Joliet Junior College on Friday to extend their current win streak to seven matches. The WolfPack, ranked #9 in the latest NJCAA Division II Poll, opened play inside H. Douglas Redsten Gymnasium with a sweep of the Trojans, and then downed the Wolves 3-1 in a match that saw their run of 20 consecutive set wins come to an end.

Match #1: #9 Madison College 3, Triton College 0 (25-21, 25-21, 25-5)

Back-to-back kills from freshman Courtney Gorum set the early tone for Madison College, and a third ended a brief 3-0 run by the Trojans. The WolfPak then rattled of five straight points that included a pair of kills from Addyson McHugh to go ahead 9-4 in the opening set. Another Gorum kill sprung the home team on another 4-0 surge, and with a 17-10 advantage, freshman Faith Radecke served up six straight points with one ace and two more McHugh kills as the Pack claimed ten of the final 12 points.

Set two was back-and-forth until first year setter Hope Hesselberg went on a service run of four straight points that started with her first collegiate kill. The run provided some separation at 14-9 before the home team slowly pulled away. Two McHugh kills sandwiched around an Alexandria Smith ace closed the second set.

The third set was all WolfPack, and all Daryn Schaefer. The sophomore setter served up three aces, and nearly produced a fourth, en route to a 7-0 start. Smith added two aces during a five-point rally, and second year libero/defensive specialist Kendal Weisensel continued the assault from behind the service line with five of her career-best-tying six aces in the match. The final three ended the match in route.

Madison College posted 15 aces, their most in a match since serving 18 aces against Western Technical College on September 27 last season. The WolfPack racked up 29 kills and just five errors on 58 attempts for a .414 attack percentage that is the program's best since a .437 mark on October 12, 2017, against Milwaukee Area Technical College. 

McHugh, a Spring Grove, Minnesota, native, went for 12 kills and hit at a season-best .550 clip. She also tied for team-high honors with four digs. Gorum was second with seven kills. Schaefer tallied 16 assists, while Hesselberg added eight. Weisensel's six aces was tops, followed by three each by Smith and Schaefer.

Madison College has won 23 straight matches and own a 23-4 lead all-time against Triton College (1-8).

Match #2: #9 Madison College 3, Joliet Junior College 1 (25-11, 25-18, 23-25, 25-21)

The day's final match proved to be the most competitive after Joliet Junior College also swept the Trojans during the middle match of the triangular, and all four sets were decided by four points or less. The WolfPack stormed out to a 6-1 lead, and while never trailing in the opening set, the differential never grew beyond five points. Addyson McHugh notched three key kills midway through the set, and also added the finishing touch with her fourth kill on set point.

Madison College got out to another big lead in the second set with eight consecutive points on the service of Daryn Schaefer. The Wolves answered with seven of the next ten points, however, the Pack eventually regained their eight-point advantage at 22-14 on another McHugh kill.

In the third set, the WolfPack erased an early 4-1 deficit and led 16-14. Joliet Junior College (5-8) stayed within striking distance, and with the set even at 19-19, won three straight and eventually earned a two-point victory to snap the WolfPack consecutive sets streak at 20 wins. 

The Wolves appeared to have all of the momentum as the fourth set began with a 6-1 run and built to a 16-6 differential. Madison College came right back with a ridiculous run of 12 straight points that included a pair of Tyra Anderson kills and three aces from Schaefer. Tied again at 19-19, the Pack took advantage of a Sophia Venne ace to go up 21-19 as part of a 5-0 run to reach match point. Anderson eventually secured the win with her tenth kill.



The 53 kills by the home team marked the second-highest total in a match this season, however, 25 attack errors held the hitting percentage down to .214. Madison College averaged 13.25 kills per set, and were led by a season-high 19 for McHugh, who posted a double-double with a dozen digs. 

Gorum racked up 16 kills and hit .257, and also produced a double-double with 15 digs. Anderson reached double-figure kills for the fourth time this season with ten.

Schaefer had 43 of the team's 51 assists and collected 13 digs for her first double-double of the year. The former Wisconsin Heights HS athlete also served up five aces. Venne, a sophomore from Wisconsin Dells, Wisconsin, added two aces and two blocks. Libero Kendall Weisensel was tops defensively with 18 digs.

The WolfPack is 26-4 all-time with wins in 21 of last 22 meetings against the Wolves.

Up Next:

Madison College (7-1) plays a road triangular on Saturday, September 9 at Kankakee Community College in Kankakee, Illinois. The #9 WolfPack will open against South Suburban College (5-4) at 1:00 p.m., followed by a 3:00 p.m. match with the host Cavaliers (3-0). Madison College won the only prior meeting with the Bulldogs in 2021 with a sweep in a neutral site match in Joliet, Illinois, while KCC boasts a 4-1 record all-time with the Pack, however, the programs have not played since 2010.

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