The second-ranked Hope volleyball team opens its quest for a NCAA Division III national championship on Thursday when it plays Webster (Mo.) at the Elmhurst, Ill., Regional.
The Flying Dutch (29-2 overall) face an opponent who is in the midst of a record-setting season.
Webster owns a 26-8 record, passing the previous school record of 25 wins set in 2007 last Saturday when it swept Principia (Ill.) in the championship game of the St. Louis Intercollegiate Athletic Conference (SLIAC).
Hope and Webster play at 12:30 p.m. CST on Thursday.
Click here for the Elmhurst Regional page.
Click here for Webster's volleyball page.
Click here to watch live video of the match.
Holland Sentinel feature story on defensive specialists Jayne Kessel, Allie Mitchell and Alexis Thompson.
Hope junior co-captain Jillian Sommerville of Plymouth (Salem HS) talks about the Flying Dutch below.
Webster has won the SLIAC Tournament three seasons in a row and seven times in the past eight years.
Three Gorloks made the all-tournament team, including middle blocker and tournament MVP Sam Kersting. Other Webster honorees were juniors Jenny Howard and junior Kristen McDowell .
Kersting, a third team All-American last season, topped Webster in the championship match with 16 points and 14 kills. She was the only player in double figures in those categories.
Kersting is hitting .355 this season, fourth highest in school history behind her .363 mark last season. She is ninth all-time in the Webster records book for most block assists in a season and ninth for total blocks in a season.
