UPLAND, Ind. - Grace’s volleyball team fought off a feisty Taylor squad to win 3-1 on Wednesday.
The No. 14 Lancers (17-5, 10-2 Crossroads League) lost the opening set but claimed the next three to grab the road win.
Taylor opened up a fast 8-3 lead in the first set; the Trojans never relinquished that lead and secured the 25-19 win.
The Trojans had a match-high 19 kills in the opener, outpacing Grace’s 11 kills.
The teams traded the lead throughout the second set. TU held a slight 19-18 edge, but an ace from Morgan Syoen and a kill from Alisha Voss put Grace back on top.
Voss added two more kills shortly afterwards, and Olivia Martinez aced on the final serve as Grace evened the match with a 25-21 victory.
Midway in the third set, Grace gained separation. Anna Elkin had two straight kills to power a 4-0 spurt, pushing Grace’s cushion to 16-11.
The Trojans could not make a significant dent in Grace’s lead as the Lancers collected a 25-19 win.
The fourth set was a nailbiter. Grace and TU took turns holding small leads.
With the score level at 19s, Sahara Bee and Livia Tate had back-to-back kills. Taylor managed to recover and evened the score at 22-22.
The score stayed even at 23-23, but Grace wrapped up the win on the next two plays. Jadyn Ross produced a thunderous kill to give the Lancers 24 points, and Voss ended the match with a kill over the block as the Lancers won 25-23.
Grace’s offense was efficient in all four sets, finishing the match with a .205 percentage. The Lancers also excelled defensively with 11 blocks.
Bee led Grace with 11 kills on two errors (.450 percentage), adding four block assists.
Voss also had a balanced outing with nine kills (.207 percentage) and a match-high six block assists.
Elkin pounded out 10 kills on a .200 percentage, and Anna Ballengee added 9 kills, 2 block assists and 4 digs.
Ross collected 6 kills, 3 block assists and 3 digs, and Tate finished with four kills and five block assists.
Riley Owens posted a double-double with 20 assists and 10 digs, and Morgan Syoen had 25 assists, 3 aces, 3 kills and 6 digs.
Liz Schmidt paced the defense with 19 digs, McKenzie Stakely added eight digs, and Martinez chipped in six digs to go with an ace.
The Lancers return home on Saturday for a 1 p.m. match against Spring Arbor. Saturday will also be Senior Day to honor Grace’s graduating class.

Late Goal Lifts Grace Past Spring Arbor
SPRING ARBOR, Mich. - Grace College’s men’s soccer team picked up a second consecutive victory with a 1-0 win over Spring Arbor on Wednesday night.
Josh Cruz played the role of hero in the win for the Lancers (5-6-2, 4-2-0 Crossroads League) as he netted the game-winning goal with under 10-minutes left in the game. It was Cruz’s second game-winning goal in as many contests.
Grace now sits just three points behind conference leader Huntington. The Lancers will play host to the Foresters on Saturday for the pivotal conference clash.
Wednesday’s clash saw Grace as the early aggressors. The Lancers had the first shot on goal just minutes into action when Joao Pereira directed a ball on net that forced the Spring Arbor (8-6-1, 2-3-1 CL) goalie to make a save.
The Lancers also had a corner kick opportunity before the Cougars started to swing momentum in their favor as the half neared its midpoint.
Spring Arbor had a trio of shots, including two that forced saves from Matteo Conci, but the game continued on as a scoreless tie.
The first half closed out with both teams trading possession as the game divulged into a midfield battle.
At the intermission Spring Arbor was outshooting Grace 4-2 and both teams had two corner kick opportunities.
The Cougars came out firing in the second half. Spring Arbor rattled off four shots in the opening five minutes, but their tenacious attack on goal was for naught as the Lancers’ defense held strong.
Spring Arbor continued to control the pace of play and dominated the scoring chances, until a yellow card on the Cougars proved to be a critical turning point.
Following the Cougars’ yellow card, the Lancers were given a free-kick near midfield. Seongwhi Lee played a long pass into the box where Gavin Morgan leaped to head the ball onto Cruz who sliced the ball past the keeper to push Grace ahead with 9:09 remaining.
Spring Arbor spent the rest of the game on the Lancers end of the field as they tried to find the equalizer but Conci saved the only shot they put on goal as the Lancers held on for the one-goal victory.
Grace was outshot 12-3 and had three corner kicks while Spring Arbor had 11.

Late Goal Stymies Grace’s Upset Bid
WINONA LAKE, Ind. - A strong performance by Grace’s women’s soccer team was undone with a late goal on Wednesday.
No. 8 Spring Arbor survived Grace’s upset bid, scoring in the 86th minute to win 1-0.
The match began with fast-paced action at both ends of the field. Spring Arbor tried a shot in the first minute only to see Grace earn a corner kick and a headed effort in the penalty box from Jaylin Young.
Ten minutes into the match, Rylee Burns used her speed to create space on the right side of the field. Burns’s low shot was pushed wide by the Cougars’ goalkeeper.
The middle portions of the half saw fierce battles for possession with each team grinding out advances toward goal.
Late in the half, a string of accurate passes allowed Grace to reach SAU’s box. Lilli Oberhoff had enough space to shoot from outside the penalty box, but her attempt was off the mark.
SAU’s best chance was another deep shot that clipped the top of the crossbar.
The Cougars tried to turn up the offensive pressure to find a late goal in the half, producing two shots and a corner kick.
But Grace remained firm, and the match reached halftime deadlocked at 0-0.
In the second half, the Lancers were in the driver’s seat. Grace possessed the ball consistently, keeping the Cougars in their half of the field.
The Lancers’ ball control gave the Cougars very little time on offense, allowing Grace to make several forays into dangerous territory.
Grace’s best chance in the second half came on a dribble from Rosalie Gefrorer. Gefrorer tried a volley in the box, but her effort was denied.
Oberhoff tried a long free kick after Grace was fouled, but her shot went high of the goal.
SAU had just a few chances to advance toward Grace’s goal in the second half, and the Cougars managed to score on one of those cases. SAU sent a high cross into the penalty box. The ball ricocheted twice, falling to a Cougar striker who volleyed the shot into the net at the 85:14 mark.
Grace was unable to find a dramatic late equalizer over the final four minutes, and SAU held on for the narrow victory.
Ivy Cline made two saves as Grace’s goalkeeper.
The Lancers will be on the road for the team’s next two outings, including Saturday at Huntington and Oct. 26 against Goshen.
Grace’s next home match is the regular season finale when Grace hosts Bethel on Oct. 30 at 7 p.m.