On Oct. 17 the Cougars took on the Illinois Institute of Technology in a make-up match from Sept. 10. The match went the distance, but the Cougars pulled it out in five sets by winning 25-11, 23-25, 25-15, 21-25, 18-16.
The match on Sept. 10 between these two teams was cancelled due to excessive heat, but that did not stop Cougar co-captains junior middle hitter Marie Hackert or junior setter Kelli Shaffer from being on fire.
Hackert had a career night with 17 kills and also tied another career high with 8 blocks in the five-set thriller. Shaffer posted 47 assists for a new career high to along with five kills and eight digs for a nice all around game.
The team also got sensational efforts from other players during the victory. Sophomore middle blocker Heidi Gregerson had 13 kills and a season-high nine total blocks for the Cougars.
Defensively the team was led by junior libero Dominique Aramburu. She had 25 digs, sophomore right side hitter Meghan Falsey had a career-high 22 digs and junior outside hitter Jessica Galotta had a season-best 18 digs to along with 10 kills.
The next match for the Cougars after scoring back-to-back victories against Illinois Institute of Technology was a conference road match against Cardinal Stritch University. The team struggled offensively, posting .103 team attack percentage for the match and ended up falling in three sets: 13-25, 13-25, 17-25.
Falsey led the team offensively with seven kills for the match and Shaffer stuffed the stat sheet with 14 assists, three kills, two service aces and seven digs. Gallota had eight digs to lead the team defensively and Gregerson chipped in four blocks for the match.
The loss dropped the team to a .500 record (11-11) before their two-day CCAC Crossover Tournament in Arlington Heights, Ill.
This past weekend the team took a trip to Arlington Heights looking to dominate the competition. On the first day of competition the Cougars split the first two matches by losing the first match to the University of Saint Francis (Ill.) and winning the second match against Calumet College of Saint Joseph.
The first match on that Friday afternoon was against rival Saint Francis, which the team lost in four sets: 25-20, 19-25, 20-25, 23-25.
The Cougars were led in defeat by Gregerson, who had 14 kills and five total blocks and they got 11 kills from Hackert. Shaffer put up 38 assists and 10 digs, Falsey had 10 kills and Aramburu had 19 digs for SXU.
In the second match Friday evening the team regrouped to beat Calumet College of Saint Joseph in five sets: 25-22, 22-25, 15-25, 25-21, 15-11.
Gregerson once again was an offensive force to reckon with, putting up 13 kills. Her partner in crime, Hackert, had 12 kills for the match.
Shaffer continued her incredible play with 33 assists, six digs and four kills, and Galotta put up a very nice all around effort with 12 digs, seven kills and two service aces. Aramburu was a defensive guru with a team-best 13 digs on the night.
The Cougars had one match in the tournament to play the next day against Indiana University-South Bend. The team wanted another win before they went home, but alas it was not meant to be as they fell to their opponents hailing from South Bend in three sets: 21-25, 17-25, 20-25.
Gregerson continued to be the offensive MVP for the Cougars during the tournament, putting up double-digit kills. Once again, she finished the match with 10.
Falsey, the stellar second-year player, also had 10 kills and Hackert finished with five kills and three blocks. Aramburu led the team defensively with 17 digs and Galotta had 11 digs.
Shaffer helped the defense out with 8 digs while also racking up 27 assists. Erica Harris had 10 digs.
Their next and last true home game is Thursday Nov. 7 against Judson University.
Damone Griffin
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