by Dena Meiste

The Hope College volleyball team split a pair of non-conference matches against nationally-ranked opponents on Saturday, sweeping the University of Wisconsin Eau Claire before being edged out in five sets by the hosting University of Chicago. 

With a tally in each column, the Flying Dutch moved to 17-2 on the season.

Hope, ranked No. 4 in the AVCA coaches' poll opened the day with a swift 25-22, 25-23, 25-13 triumph over Eau-Claire, who sit at No. 11 11 in the rankings. 

The one-two offensive punch of seniors McKenna Otto (Wheaton, Illinois / Wheaton North) and Ana Grunewald (Grand Rapids, Michigan / East Grand Rapids) led the Flying Dutch, pictured left to right. Otto put down a match-high 12 kills in the middle, while Grunewald earned her 10 kills from the outside pin.

Overall, Hope outpaced the Blugolds (19-3) on offense with a 46-37 advantage in kills.

Defensively, the Flying Dutch were once again led by sophomore libero Maggie Wehrmeyer (Holland, Michigan / West Ottawa), who protected the backcourt with 14 digs. Grunewald and Grace Pettinger (Mt. Vernon, Iowa / Mt. Vernon) further helped the Hope cause with 10 digs apiece.

The second match looked much different than the first, with Hope and UChicago needing the full five frames to determine the winner. With a little more rest between matches, the No. 19 Maroons narrowly outlasted the Dutch 26-28, 25-23, 25-17, 23-25, 15-11.

Chicago (11-6) snapped the Flying Dutch's 13-game winning streak.

Though both teams made 203 attack attempts while committing 29 errors, UChicago was more efficient, putting down 66 kills to Hope's 53.

Grunewald turned in her second double-double performance of the day, with 12 kills and 16 digs. The senior added five aces from the service line. Rose Thompson (Coopersville, Michigan / Unity Christian) joined Grunewald on the offensive leaderboard with 12 kills of her own.

Wehmeyer turned in 22 digs, followed by Tracy Westra, with 19.

Westra (Clarendon Hills, Illinois / Timothy Christian) scattered 85 assists in the two matches, with 41 in the first match against UWEC and 44 versus UChicago.

The Blugold-Maroon tilt was won by Eau Claire, 3-2. 

After five matches in the last eight days, Hope looks forward to a quieter week again with just one match at home on Wednesday, Oct. 13 against Adrian. First serve inside DeVos Fieldhouse is slated for 6:30 p.m.