Jackets finish regular season with 5-set loss to Siena Heights

DEFIANCE, Ohio – The Defiance Yellow Jackets concluded the women's volleyball regular season on Friday night with a nail-biting 3-2 loss (24-26, 25-22, 25-23, 20-25, 10-15) at the Karl H. Weaner Center.

The Yellow Jackets (16-16, 9-11 WHAC) honored their three seniors, Lauryn O'Lenic, Jaelyn Tomoletz and Kirsten Vanisacker, prior to the contest and started the game with all three in the starting lineup.

All five sets against the Saints (13-15, 8-11 WHAC) were closely contested, finishing the match with a total separation of 17 points. Defiance saw a 5-point lead disappear in the first and traded points the rest of the set before the Saints grabbed the last two point to win 26-24.

The Yellow Jackets took the next two sets to take the upper hand. Trailing 21-18 in a pivotal third set, Defiance took advantage of a Siena Heights attacking error followed by a crucial kill in the middle by Taylor Craft to go ahead 23-22. Chaney Brodbeck responded by clinching the set with back-to-back kills to take the third for Defiance.

Neither side could find separation in the fourth until Siena Heights went on a 5-point streak to lead by 3. By then, the Saints held the momentum and put DC away with a 25-20 win to force a fifth. The Jackets scored the first point of the deciding set when Tomoletz capped off a lengthy opening volley. O'Lenic followed with a cross-court slam to tie the score 3-3, but the Saints kept humming with kills by Devyne Eisenhauer and Bianca Hobson to lead 8-4 by the flip. Haley Hammer gave Defiance some late life with two aces in a row to trim the lead down to 12-10, but Siena Heights picked up the last 3 points to close down the Weaner Center for women's volleyball this fall.

INSIDE THE NUMBERS

• The Yellow Jackets played their seventh 5-set match of the season, falling to 3-4 in such matches this year.
• Gabby Rodriguez had a stellar match and matched a season-high with 15 kills to help lead the way offensively for Defiance. 
• Chaney Brodbeck also swatted 15 kills and assisted on 3 blocks. Brodbeck also had 25 digs.
• Taylor Craft joined the duo in double figures with 11 kills, followed by Jaelyn Tomoletz and Sarah Hirschy with 6 kills each.
• Kaylee Dickinson set a new career-high in digs with 28, the most in a match by a DC player this season.
• Haley Hammer dig all the setting for DC for the evening, ending with 46 assists.

UP NEXT
The Yellow Jackets continue play in the WHAC Tournament beginning next Wednesday night. Defiance will be on the road against an opponent to be determined.

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