Trojans Go Back-and-Forth with No. 16 Grace in Tight Loss

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UPLAND, Ind. – The Taylor volleyball team battled No. 16 Grace (17-5, 10-2 CL) tough Wednesday evening, but the effort ultimately fell short in a four-set loss (25-19, 21-25, 19-25, 23-25).

It was TU who looked the part of a ranked team in the opening set, jumping out to a 9-4 lead as Gracie Conway and Reagan Kleiman, in part, imposed their will on the Lancers. The hosts had contributors aplenty as they expanded their lead to as many as nine, and Conway recorded kills for each of the final three Trojan points to close out the set.

19 kills – all assisted by Lindsay Springer – were tallied by the Trojans in just the opening frame, with Conway and Kleiman combining for 11 and Reagan Salzbrenner, Grace Ieremia and Daya Vestal notching the other eight kills.

Grace's Crossroads League-leading blockers went to work in the second frame, as the Lancers prevailed in a tight set that was tied late, 21-21.

The visitors went up early in set number three and fended off a comeback to take a 2-1 advantage in the match.

The fourth set featured high-level volleyball from both sides as the teams went back-and-forth, combining for 40 total digs in the period. The score was tied on 13 separate occasions in that final set alone, with neither team able to get the upper hand until Grace recorded the last two points consecutively.

Conway finished the match with a season-high 16 kills, a number which doubled as the match-high. Kleiman neared that total with 14 of her own kills while converting at a .235 clip.

Lindsay Springer recorded 50 assists – her most since Aug. 31.

As a team, TU notched 75 digs compared to Grace's 65. McKaylah Flagle led the way with a match-best 25 digs, while Abi Powers and Jen Springer had 15 and 12 digs, respectively.

The match Wednesday marked the seventh time in 2024 TU had played a ranked opponent, and the Purple and Grey have taken at least one set in all seven instances. 

Taylor (8-16, 3-9 CL) will look to tie the season series versus Huntington (13-11, 5-7) when the Foresters come to town on Saturday, with play beginning at 3 p.m.