Cornell brings the heat to the court in multiple games

Izzy Hickethier, Cornell senior, bats the ball back to New Auburn, on her home court Sept. 6, with a conference win over the Trojans. Photo by Ginna Young

By Ginna Young

It was an action-packed week for the Cornell volleyball program, as the Chiefs continued their winning ways.

Sept. 6 vs. Birchwood conference (W 3-0)

To begin the week, Cornell hosted Birchwood, where the Chiefs went full force in their drive to win the conference match.

The sets went to Cornell, 25-17, 25-14 and 25-16.

Leading for the Chiefs, was senior Michayla Turchen, with 8 kills, 2 aces and 5 digs. Junior Makya Hetherington finished with 10 assists and 2 kills, while sophomore Brianna Glaus had 5 kills and junior Teryn Close ended with 7 digs.

Sept. 8 vs. New Auburn conference (W 3-0)

It was then off to New Auburn, where Cornell won in 3 sets – 25-13, 25-18 and 25-21.

“We faced a solid New Auburn squad that challenged us with their strong serves and middle attacks,” said coach Amy Lorenzen. “We were able to overcome a slow start in the second.”

New Auburn took the lead at the end of the third set, bringing the score to 21-20. After a timeout, junior Brooke Anderson put a smart tip-down for a kill and followed it by two more kills, plus one more from Hetherington, to give Cornell the serve, at 24-21.

“We closed out the third set with an ace,” said Lorenzen. Anderson came up with 9 digs and 4 kills on the night, followed by sophomore Bralee Schroeder, with 9 digs, 16 assists and 5 aces. Junior Brooke Sime added 9 kills, with Turchen recording 8, while Hetherinton added 6, as well as 15 assists.

Sept. 10 vs. Chetek non-conference (L 2-1)

The weekend saw Cornell head to Chetek, for a tournament, with good success. But, it also handed the Chiefs their first lost. First up, was host team Chetek.

“Chetek was our only loss for the day,” said Lorenzen. “They are a very good defensive team, which made it very challenging for us to get the momentum going, and push past our own serving and communication errors.”

The first set went to Chetek, 27-26, but Cornell bounced back to take the second set, 25-17, dropping the third set to Chetek, 15-11.

Sime came up with 4 kills, 5 digs and 16 serves, with 1 ace. Turchen followed up with 5 kills and 6 digs, and Hetherington added 8 assists and 9 digs.

Sept. 10 vs. Siren non-conference (W 2-1)

Next up was Siren, where the Chiefs took the first set, 25-19, but dropped the second, 25-19. In the end, Cornell claimed the victory, 15-9.

Turchen had 8 kills in the match, with Sime notching 4 kills, 4 aces and 6 digs, while Hetherington recorded 12 assists and Anderson added 7 digs.

Sept. 10 vs. New Auburn conference (W 2-1)

In the third match of the day, Cornell faced a familiar face – New Auburn, who they saw a mere two days before.

The Chiefs lost the first set, 25-22, but shook off the nerves.

“During the second set, our passing was on, and our setters and hitters were connecting really well,” said Lorenzen.

Cornell won 25-12, then came out strong in the third and took an early lead, but New Auburn pushed back to make it a close 15-12 finish in favor of the Chiefs.

Turchen had 13 kills and 6 digs for Cornell, while Glaus notched 5 kills and 3 aces, and Anderson had 5 kills, 6 digs and 2 aces. Schroeder rounded it out with 10 assists and 5 aces.

Sept. 10 vs. Cumberland non-conference (W 2-0)

For the final match of the day, Cornell took on Cumberland, with a quick win in two sets, 25-19 and 25-12.

Schroeder ended with 11 assists and 9 digs, followed by Anderson, with 4 kills and 6 digs. Turchen chipped in with 5 kills, and Glaus came up big, with 3 kills, 5 digs, and served 13, with 2 aces and 0 errors.

“Overall this tournament brings our record to 7 and 1,” said Lorenzen.

The Chiefs remain undefeated in conference action.