The Forester volleyball team celebrated Homecoming with a 25-23, 24-26, 25-19, 25-17 victory over Monmouth College in the Sports & Recreation Center on Saturday. Sophomore middle blocker K.C. Wenson recorded a season-high 14 kills and was part of eight of Lake Forest's 14 blocks on the day.
Wenson committed just three attack errors in 30 attempts for a .367 hitting percentage. The other middle blocker, freshman Brittany Avonts, actually led all players in the match with 15 kills and added two aces and six blocks. Sophomore outside hitter Erin Sully also reached double figures with 10 kills and she served up four aces on the afternoon.
The Foresters setters, junior Torie Pasiewicz and senior Victoria Drasler, each had 21 assists in the match and Drasler led the team with career-high-tying 14 digs. Sophomores Brianne Honda and Kaitlyn Ladao added 12 and 10 digs, respectively.
Monmouth held a small lead for most of the first set and extended the margin to five points at 16-11. The Foresters chipped away at the deficit, tied the score at 21, and took their first lead of the night at 23-22 on an ace by Avonts. After the Fighting Scots tied the score at 23, a kill be Wenson put Lake Forest back on top and a Monmouth attack finished off the set.
A seven-point run by the Foresters early in the second set gave them a 9-5 advantage and the lead grew to as many as six points at 13-7. The Scots, however, battled back and tied the score at 19. The visitors' first lead of the set was at 23-22 and, after Lake Forest pulled even at 24, a pair of kills clinched the set for the visitors.
Lake Forest won 12 of 13 points early in set three to take a 15-4 lead. After trailing 22-9, Monmouth used a 10-2 run to pull to within five points before a kill by Wenson ended the set.
The Foresters jumped out to a 6-1 lead in the fourth set and rattled off four straight points later on to extend the margin to eight points (17-9). The Scots got no closer than five points the rest of the way and a kill by Avonts finished off the match.
It was Lake Forest's third consecutive victory and the Foresters raised their overall record to 8-11 and Midwest Conference mark to 2-1. Monmouth fell to 7-10 overall and 2-1 in the league.
Lake Forest will continue conference action in Iowa next weekend when the team plays at defending MWC champion Cornell College Friday night at 7:00 and at Grinnell College Saturday at 1:00 p.m.
