WINONA LAKE, Ind. - Grace's volleyball team kicked off the Crossroads League Tournament in style on Saturday.
The Lancers swept Marian in the quarterfinals, taking down the 20-win Knights in a hard-fought match.
The win moves Grace into the semifinals where the Lancers will travel to Indiana Wesleyan on Wednesday. Grace and IWU split the regular season with each team winning on the road.
The Lancers outpaced Marian in most statistical categories. A steady offense was coupled with a tough defensive effort, allowing the No. 20 Lancers (25-7) to knock out the Knights (20-14).
Grace used balanced offense in the first set. Six players recorded multiple kills in the set, led by Molly Hofmann's four kills.
The Lancers won the first four points of the set thanks to kills from Anna Elkin and Olivia Martinez as well as an ace from Grace Bowers. Grace eventually grabbed a 10-2 lead, forcing Marian to call a quick timeout.
The Lancers still led by eight at 16-8, but Marian employed a 9-2 run to chop Grace's margin down to one at 18-17.
A Grace timeout steadied the ship, and kills from Abby Leffring and Savannah Clawson added to Grace's lead.
Marian kept pressure on Grace, however, resulting in a close finish. Elkin earned a kill on the final rally as Grace held on to win 25-23.
The second set was a stunning rout. Marian scored the first two points, but the Lancers scored virtually every one after that.
The Lancers rattled off eight unanswered points shortly before going on a separate 11-0 run. Marian had no answer as Grace found success with aces, blocks and kills.
Grace polished off the shocking 25-6 win to take a commanding lead in the match. Hofmann had four more kills, and Clawson tallied four kills in the set as well.
Grace had 12 kills on just one error, hitting at a .440 percentage in the set. Marian, on the other hand, had nine attacking errors on a -.156 percentage.
The third set was a nailbiter like the opener. Grace again forced an early timeout from Marian after jumping on top 13-4. Elkin had three early kills to power Grace's fast start.
The Lancers led by nine before the Knights began their comeback. Marian scored five straight points to claw back. That was followed by another 5-1 spurt, and Grace clung to a one-point lead at 18-17.
Out of a Grace timeout, Hofmann quickly produced two timely kills to provide breathing room. The Lancers gradually served for the match with a 24-21 lead.
Marian managed to survive three match points as the match went into extra points. But down the stretch, Grace turned to sophomores Hofmann and Leffring, and the duo delivered with back-to-back kills to clinch the win at 27-25.
Hofmann led all players with 13 kills on a .500 percentage, adding four block assists.
Elkin finished with 8 kills, 3 aces and 9 digs, while also being perfect in 18 serve receptions.
Clawson produced seven kills, and Levyn Snow and Leffring each had five. Callie Jo Celichowski gathered 1 solo block, 5 block assists and 4 kills.
Carsyn Witt had a double-double with 24 assists, 11 digs and 2 aces, while Reese McCutchan added 15 assists. Reagan Owens led all players with 21 digs.
Grace finished with 45 kills on a .261 attacking percentage; Marian had 30 kills at a .090 clip. Grace also had major advantages in aces (8-2) and digs (59-46).
