Taylor Snags Sole Possession of First After Sweeping Grace

Volleyball | Wed, Oct. 12, 2022 at 9:00 PM
| by Jake Chipka

WINONA LAKE, Ind. – After moving up one spot in the national ranks, No. 12 Taylor (21-5, 10-2 CL) took to the court against Grace (8-15, 3-9 CL) Wednesday evening and defeated the Lancers in three sets, meanwhile moving into sole possession of first place in the Crossroads League.

Taylor’s offense was fueled by the one-two punch of Arlanda Faulkner and Anna Frey, who combined for 21 of Taylor’s 37 kills while accumulating just two total errors. Faulkner led the way with 12 kills, struck at a clip of .550, while Frey followed close by with nine kills and a hitting percentage of .471.

Along the way to its 14th three-set sweep of the season, Taylor also capitalized on 14 Lancer service errors, six of which came in the first set.

Taylor went on to win the opening set by a score of 25-22, powered along the way by middle-hitter, Grace Ieremia, who posted four kills and three blocks in the first set alone.

TU found itself down 7-5 early in set two, before a 6-0 Trojan run flipped the script to an 11-7 Taylor lead. From there, Faulkner and Frey guided the Trojans to a 25-20 set win while recording four kills apiece, alongside five more Grace service errors.

A similar script, then, unfolded in set three, a period of play in which Taylor trailed by a score of 9-3 before a series of runs gave Taylor its advantage. After responding with a 4-1 run to crawl within three points of the Lancers, Taylor ripped off a 5-0 run followed by yet another 7-1 run to establish a 20-15 Trojan lead late in the game.

Sophomore middle-hitter, Jaylynn Dunsmore, soon after closed the book for Wednesday’s match, recording the final two kills of the evening and granting the Trojans a 25-21 third-set win.

Taylor has now swept Grace in each of its last four matchups with the Lancers, and now owns sole possession of first place in the Crossroads League after No. 15 Marian was swept in three sets by Huntington.

No. 12 Taylor (21-5, 10-2 CL) will look maintain its grasp on first place when the Trojans return to the court next Wednesday, October 19, at Mount Vernon Nazarene (22-5, 7-5 CL).