The Lawrence University volleyball team has had an up-and-down season, which was encapsulated by last weekend’s Wheaton College Invitational. The Vikings, who entered the tournament at .500 for the season, went 1-3 in their four matches.
In their first two games of the weekend, Lawrence lost three games to one against the University of Dubuque and North Central College.
Junior outside hitter/middle hitter Clare Bohrer finished each match with a double-digit number of kills, while freshman setter Diana McLeod’s 32 assists against North Central tied her for the most of the match.
The next day, the Vikings lost to Benedictine University 25-18, 25-17, 22-25, 25-23. The match went very similarly to Lawrence’s first two matches, as all 12 sets were close but the Vikings lost all three matches without ever forcing a fifth set.
It is clear that the Vikings have the talent to play against upper-echelon teams, but they have simply struggled to put together a complete match this season.
Facing the possibility of a winless weekend, Lawrence finished with a four-set win against Franklin College. The Vikings dominated the first set 25-13, and though the remainder of the sets were more closely contested, Lawrence won the match 25-13, 25-22, 17-25, 25-19. Sophomore Shannon McClain, with 13 kills, and Bohrer, with 14, led the way for Lawrence in the win.
Bohrer leads the team in kills this season with 180, which is nearly 2.95 per set for the junior captain. Senior Melissa Schnettler and McClain are second and third respectively.
However, the more important loss of the weekend was the Vikings’ loss of Schnettler to a season-ending knee injury.
The Vikings (8-10, 0-0 MWC) won’t take the court again until Oct. 5, when they will face Mount Mary at Alexander Gymnasium.
Volleyball goes 1-3 at Wheaton Invitational
