The Calvin Knights were victorious over the Trine thunder team in a tight battle of four sets. The Knights had a three point margin of victory. The sets went as follows: 25-23, 21-25, 25-22, 25-23.

Trine entered the postseason with a 24-5 regular season record, only losing one match. Despite being ranked the top team in the nation, Calvin coach Amber Warners never took the competition for granted.

“First of all, I want to tip my cap to [Coach Jamie Wozniak] and her team. I thought it was an incredibly defensive battle with lots of long rallies.”

Both teams had over 90 digs. Calvin’s hitting percentage was .203 and Trine’s was .165.

Junior Maggie Kamp and sophomore Laura Danhoff both managed 15 kills, but both players were frustrated with the defensive display.

“They were quick and scrappy,” said Kamp. She added, “It’s not about kills at this point in the season, it’s about the final score.”

Senior Elise Biesboer countered defense with defense by collecting 28 digs.

Serving was as much a tool as it was a downfall for the teams. Trine had 11 service aces and only six serving errors while Calvin had six aces and nine errors.

Freshman setter Jenna Lodewyk collected three of Calvin’s service aces and 48 assists to help the offense.

“I definitely think this match made us a better team,” said Lodewyk. “After coming back from a deficit like that and really fighting and having to lift each other up, I think we all grew from that. Just having intense games like this makes us more excited for the next intense game.”

Calvin will face number two Hope College at the DeVos Fieldhouse at 4:00 p.m. Saturday November 8.