WINONA LAKE - Grace’s volleyball team found itself trailing two sets to one at St. Francis on Wednesday.
But the Lancers showed plenty of fight, winning the fourth and fifth sets to complete the impressive 3-2 comeback on the road.
The win improves Grace’s record to 16-8 (7-6 Crossroads League) as the Lancers continue their impressive campaign.
The Lancers were balanced across the match, flexing the team’s depth with key contributions across the roster.
Four players finished in double digits for kills, led by 13 kills apiece from Alisha Leffring and Jadyn Ross. Grace’s 60 kills were its most in a match this season. Liz Schmidt also amassed 27 digs.
In the first set, Grace’s blocking proved to be pivotal. The Lancers were outhit 11 kills to 15, but Grace had eight block assists to power its scoring.
Early in the set, Leffring pounded out three straight kills to spark a 5-0 run. The Cougars recovered to set up a tight ending.
Another late kill from Leffring followed later by a kill from Morgan Syoen allowed Grace to hold on late for the 25-23 win. Leffring had five of Grace’s 11 kills in the set.
The Cougars looked to immediately even the set by seizing an 18-11 lead. But Grace showed resolve to recover and apply heavy pressure on USF.
Two kills apiece from Ross and Sahara Bee evened the score at 22-22.
The Cougars scored twice and served for the set, but two USF attack errors sent the set to extra points. USF managed to end the set by taking the next two points in a 26-24 victory.
Grace found itself in a hole early in the third set as well. The Cougars surged in front 13-6.
USF’s lead grew to 19-11 before Grace produced another massive rally. The Lancers stormed back into contention with a 10-3 run, pulling within one with the score 22-21.
But the Lancers were unable to fully bridge the gap; the Cougars had three kills to close out the set 25-22 and pull ahead in the match.
Grace was determined not to go down in the fourth set. Neither side could get a significant advantage for most of the set.
The Lancers produced a timely 5-0 spurt to help break open the set, however. Kills from Katie Swanson, Leffring and Anna Ballengee helped Grace earn a 21-16 cushion.
Grace’s defense, including blocking from Leffring and a few impressive digs from McKenzie Stakely, helped the Lancers seal the deal. Swanson also had three kills in the final handful of points as Grace won 25-19 to force a fifth set.
Grace began the tiebreaker with momentum. Leffring began the set with two straight kills. On the third point, Leffring and Ross stuffed a Cougar attack for a 3-0 lead.
The Lancers remained in front 8-4 as the teams switched sides, but USF speedily sliced that cushion to one at 8-7. Well-timely kills, however, from Ballengee and Leffring kept Grace ahead.
The Lancers’ team victory was emphasized on the final point as difficult digs by Stakely, Riley Owens and Swanson kept Grace alive; Swanson then ended the match with a kill on the final attempt as Grace secured the comeback 15-11.
Leffring (13 kills, 4 block assists) and Ross (13 kills, 14 digs) led Grace’s attack. Sahara Bee (10 kills, 6 block assists) and Swanson (10 kills, 2 block assists) were also crucial on both sides of the net.
Livia Tate finished with five kills and five block assists, and Ballengee added six kills.
Syoen produced a double-double with 24 assists, 13 digs and 3 kills, and Owens had 21 assists and six digs.
On the back row, Schmidt’s season-high 27 digs and Stakely’s 15 digs proved to be critical.
The Lancers end the week with a pair of home matches, including Friday at 7 p.m. against Marian and Saturday at 3 p.m. versus Spring Arbor.

Golf Atop Leaderboard, Wilburn And Jones Finish Top-3
BENTON HARBOR, Mich. - Grace’s men’s golf team brought home the hardware from the Pilot Fall Invitational on Monday and Tuesday. The two-day tournament was hosted by Bethel at Harbor Shores Golf Club.
The Lancers were atop the leaderboard of eight teams from wire-to-wire. Grace put together a first-round 294 to lead the host Pilots by one after 18 holes. From there, the group shaved off four strokes to post a 290 to close out the tournament in first place with a 594 combined score.
Grace had two players finish in the top-3 on the individual leaderboard. Parker Wilburn paced the team with the low round (68) of the tournament on day one, followed by a 74 to finish runner-up just four strokes back.
Camron Jones was just two strokes behind in third place with a 144 after 36 holes. He carded a 74 to go along with a one under par 70 in the second round.
Blake Lawson went 75-72, improving three strokes between rounds to compile a 147.
Isaac Embry also went three strokes better in the second 18 to finish with a 151 over two days.
Tristen Dubbs rounded out the scoring for the Lancers with an 83-78.
“This team is ready for the NCCAA Championships,” said head coach Denny Helper. “We are on a roll and excited to head to Florida.”
Grace will prepare for its next outing on Oct. 23-25 at the NCCAA National Championships at Hammock Beach Resort in Palm Coast, Fla. The Lancers received an at-large bid to the nine-team tournament, taking place over three rounds.

Grace Welcomes Fort Wayne Schools For Sportsmanship Summit
WINONA LAKE, Ind. – Grace College and Director of Athletics Chad Briscoe welcomed student-athletes from the high schools of the Fort Wayne area for a Sportsmanship Summit on Wednesday.
Thirty student-athletes from Fort Wayne Community Schools attended the conference, which was designed to educate student-athletes about sportsmanship and character training in athletics.
"We are pleased to be a part of building character at the high-school level through the Sportsmanship Summit," Briscoe said. "We hope it served as a great opportunity to educate and reinforce character education and to help promote the importance of sportsmanship for each student-athlete."
Students from the Fort Wayne high schools spent the day together working in groups to discuss and challenge one another in sportsmanship and character-building opportunities in the athletic realm. The students worked in team-initiative opportunities to build camaraderie among the schools in the conference.
The Sportsmanship Summit featured sessions from Robert Faulkens/Brian Lewis (Assistant Commissioners, IHSAA), Roger Grossman and Briscoe.