CHICAGO – Marie Pregenzer hit .469 with 16 kills and just one error in 32 attacks and Taylor Rosenthal led the team with 17 kills and five blocks as Albion College split its opening volleyball matches of the season.
Kelsey Gustafson (13) and Kate Winter (10) also reached double figures in kills on Friday.
Albion defeated Central, Iowa (18-25, 25-12, 25-13, 25-23)
After hitting .125 in the first set, Albion rallied to post a .367 hitting percentage the rest of the way. The Britons produced 15 kills with just one error in the third set and they knocked down 11 kills without committing an error in the fourth.
Pregenzer hit .474 with nine kills in 19 attacks. She also served up an ace.
Gustafson and Rosenthal also produced nine kills each. Gustafson added seven digs.
Winter hit .412 with eight kills in 17 attacks, and first-year Chloe Webber added eight kills.
Setter Grace VanDorn piled up 40 assists and seven digs, while libero Monica Shuk collected 23 digs.
North Park defeated Albion (25-16, 25-23, 25-14)
Albion looked to tie the match in the second set, but it fell behind 21-18 on Gustafson's hitting error. A bad set and attack error helped Albion climb back within a point at 24-23, but Kelly Clinton terminated the final point for North Park.
Albion had as many kills as it had errors in the third set.
Rosenthal collected eight kills and committed just one error in hitting .389. Pregenzer, who hit .462 with just one error, had seven kills and three block assists.
Of Note
Shuk collected 27 digs in the Friday matches, taking her over 1,700 in her career. The Michigan Intercollegiate Athletic Association Defensive Most Valuable Player from a year ago now stands at 1,711.
Next Up
Albion takes the court against the University of Chicago on Saturday. The first serve is set for 1 p.m. ET.