A noon start did wonders for the John Carroll volleyball team, as some midday magic carried the Blue Streaks to a split on Saturday at the HCAC/OAC Crossover Tournament in Berea, Ohio.
 
In the first match, the Streaks pulled off a 3-0 sweep against the Panthers from Mount St. Joseph.  Coming into the match, John Carroll was 4-11 compared to Mount St. Joseph's record of 10-5.  Nonetheless, the Streaks of JCU came out guns ablaze and never let up. 

The first game proved to be a tight contest, but the Blue Streaks prevailed, claiming set one 25-23.  As the sets went on, the Blue Streaks increased their victory margins.  In the second set, the Blue Streaks won in yet another close contest, 25-21.  Finally, in the deciding set, the Streaks won with a comfortable margin of eight points, beating Mount St. Joseph 25-17. 
 
It was a terrific team match, as multiple players had exemplary games.  Freshmen Shannon Atwell (20 assists, seven digs, one kill) and Maddie Christopher (11 assists, three service aces, and three digs) played out of their minds, especially Christopher, who set a personal record with her three service aces.
 
The juniors came to play, as well.  The stellar combination of Nicole Pilewski (eight kills, two assists, and 13 digs), Thommie Jackson (seven kills and five digs), and Caitlin Cianciolo (three kills, two assists, two service aces, and 15 digs) helped push John Carroll to their first victory of the tournament.  Julianne McGervey also added seven kills and five digs to the team's stats.
 
In the second and last match of the day and tournament, John Carroll fell to Hanover College in three sets (25-16, 25-13, 25-15).  Pilewski (five kills, an assist, three digs, and three block assists) and Christopher (seven assists, two service aces, five digs) continued to be strong contributors. 

Cianciolo finished with 18 digs in the match.  Her performance throughout the weekend earned a spot on the All-Tournament Team.
 
The Streaks (4-13) next matchup will be on Wednesday, September 27th against the Terriers of Hiram College (11-5).