Volleyball equals '95 win total

Team drops three in a row at GLCA tournament

With Wednesday's win over Notre Dame College of Ohio, Oberlin's volleyball team matched its win total for last season.

The 3-1 match pulled the Yeowomen back to a .500 record after they dropped all their matches last Friday and Saturday at the Great Lakes College Association tournament at Hope College in Holland, Mich.

In Holland, the Yeowomen employed a new offense and a new line-up. The offense, featuring quick sets, will remain. But for Wednesday's game, Suzanne Garland brought back the same line-up that the team used in its 3-1 opening weekend.

The weekend was tough for the Yeowomen, dropping all three matches in three games while breaking in a new offense.

"When you're thinking about how you're going to spike, it's kind of hard to pass," junior Carissa Bennett said.

It also didn't help that Oberlin was playing tough competition. The first match was against Kalamazoo College, which was ranked as high as fifth among the nation's NCAA Division III during last season.

Even if the wins didn't come, Oberlin did jump out to an 8-2 lead at the opening of the Kalamazoo game.

"I've told them all along that you can plan with some of the top 20 teams in the country," Garland said.

Following the Kalamazoo match, Oberlin fell to DePauw and Albion colleges. Against Albion, Oberlin fought to a 17-15 loss.

Then, the Yeowomen came home for the match against Notre Dame. And for their first two and fourth games, they dominated their opponent.

Senior Nell Hanssen's precise serving was one of the keys. Notre Dame relied heavily on one player and Garland signaled to Hanssen where to serve.

Hanssen served out the fourth game, hitting a different spot with each serve. And she put Notre Dame away with an ace.

Saturday, the Yeowomen play in the Grove City Invitational in Grove City, Penn.