Richardson’s 14 Kills Power Marshall to 2-0 Road Sweep of Mt. Carmel

MT. CARMEL, Ill. — Harper Richardson hammered 14 kills, served three aces and dug out 10 balls on Sept. 10 as Marshall swept Mt. Carmel 2-0 in a conference volleyball match at the Aces’ gym.

The senior was involved in nearly every phase of the match for the Lions, who improved to 18-8 on the season. Richardson swung 28 times and hit .286, accounting for half of Marshall’s 28 kills, and she added 10 assists while running the second ball.

Marshall’s efficiency at the net was the difference. The Lions hit .234 as a team on 64 swings, while Mt. Carmel managed 13 kills on 44 attempts and hit .114. Sophomore Lillian Ross was the most ruthless hitter on the floor, putting away nine of her 11 attempts for a .727 clip without an error of consequence — one, to be exact — and she also led Marshall with 14 assists and chipped in three block assists.

Senior Ellie Delp served two aces among her 10 attempts and swung 14 times, the second-highest total on the Lions’ side. Senior Mckenzie Davis added two kills, a solo block, six digs and eight serve receptions, and freshman Libby Huisinga contributed a kill on five swings.

Junior Ali Sheets did the unglamorous work in the back row, handling 24 serve receptions — more than any other player in the match — and adding seven digs while leading Marshall with 10 service points.

Mt. Carmel, which fell to 5-17, got steady service pressure from senior Lyla Keepes, who put three aces in on eight attempts and served at 87.5 percent. Keepes also led the Aces with five digs, added three kills and shared the team’s only block.

Junior Avery Coston led Mt. Carmel’s attack with four kills on 11 swings, and senior Kyleigh Smith was the Aces’ most efficient hitter, converting three of four attempts. Junior setter Quincy Keepes distributed all 12 of Mt. Carmel’s assists and added three digs and an ace.

The Aces matched Marshall’s seven aces and made fewer service errors, three to six, but could not keep pace in the attack. Sophomore Cate Pyatt took 10 swings and senior Leah Lewis added a kill and four digs. Senior Mercedes Dillard handled 13 serve receptions and served an ace, and senior Leila Sweeney took seven receptions in the back row.

Game Summary

Score by Sets

Match result: Marshall def. Mt. Carmel 2-0 (conference). Marshall improves to 18-8; Mt. Carmel falls to 5-17.

Individual Statistics

MARSHALL

KILLS: Harper Richardson (Sr) 14 (28 att, 6 e, .286); Lillian Ross (So) 9 (11 att, 1 e, .727); Ellie Delp (Sr) 2 (14 att, 3 e, -.071); Mckenzie Davis (Sr) 2 (6 att, 3 e, -.167); Libby Huisinga (Fr) 1 (5 att, 0 e, .200). Team: 28 kills, 13 errors, 64 attempts, .234.

ASSISTS: Lillian Ross 14 (7.0/set); Harper Richardson 10 (5.0/set). Team: 24.

SERVING (aces): Harper Richardson 3 (10 att, 1 e, 90.0%); Ellie Delp 2 (10 att, 2 e, 80.0%); Ali Sheets (Jr) 1 (14 att); Lillian Ross 1 (7 att, 0 e, 100.0%). Service points: Sheets 10, Delp 7, Richardson 6, Ross 3, Huisinga 2. Team: 7 aces, 6 errors.

BLOCKS: Lillian Ross 3 (3 BA); Mckenzie Davis 1 (1 BS). Team: 4.

DIGS: Harper Richardson 10; Ali Sheets 7; Mckenzie Davis 6; Lillian Ross 5; Ellie Delp 3; Libby Huisinga 2. Team: 33.

SERVE RECEIVING: Ali Sheets 24 (7 e); Mckenzie Davis 8; Ellie Delp 3; Harper Richardson 3; Lillian Ross 1.

MT. CARMEL

KILLS: Avery Coston (Jr) 4 (11 att, 2 e, .182); Kyleigh Smith (Sr) 3 (4 att, 0 e, .750); Lyla Keepes (Sr) 3 (14 att, 3 e, .000); Cate Pyatt (So) 2 (10 att, 3 e, -.100); Leah Lewis (Sr) 1 (5 att, 0 e, .200). Team: 13 kills, 8 errors, 44 attempts, .114.

ASSISTS: Quincy Keepes (Jr) 12 (6.0/set). Team: 12.

SERVING (aces): Lyla Keepes 3 (8 att, 1 e, 87.5%); Quincy Keepes 1 (9 att); Leah Lewis 1 (4 att, 1 e, 75.0%); Kyleigh Smith 1 (7 att); Mercedes Dillard (Sr) 1 (6 att, 1 e, 83.3%); Mylee Farmer (Sr) 0 (7 att). Team: 7 aces, 3 errors.

BLOCKS: Lyla Keepes 1 (1 BA). Team: 1.

DIGS: Lyla Keepes 5; Leah Lewis 4; Quincy Keepes 3; Mylee Farmer 3; Leila Sweeney (Sr) 2; Mercedes Dillard 2; Kyleigh Smith 1; Avery Coston 1. Team: 21.

SERVE RECEIVING: Lyla Keepes 14 (1 e); Mercedes Dillard 13 (1 e); Mylee Farmer 8; Leila Sweeney 7 (1 e); Leah Lewis 2.