Grace College sophomore and former Tippecanoe Valley standout Caylie Teel (No. 10) celebrates during her team’s 3-1 win over Spring Arbor Friday night (Photo provided by the Grace College Sports Information Department).

WINONA LAKE – On a night when Grace’s attack was off its usual form, the Lady Lancers’ volleyball team was propelled by defense.

Grace held Spring Arbor to a team hitting percentage of .083 en route to a 3-1 victory on Friday at the Manahan Orthopaedic Capital Center.

The Lady Lancers (12-16, 6-8 Crossroads League) had four players with double-digit digs, led by Caylie Teel’s 28 digs, and five players recorded a block point in the match.

Spring Arbor got the better of Grace in the opening set. The score went back and forth down the final moments, tying at 18, 19, 20, 21, 22 and 23. The Cougars (4-20, 0-14 CL) snatched the win at the end, scoring two straight for a 25-23 victory.

Grace returned the favor in the second game, pulling away late. The Cougars rallied from a 15-9 hole to make the score 21-20, but a well-placed timeout from head coach Katie Van Hofwegen calmed Grace’s nerves. The Lady Lancers scored the next two points en route to a a 25-22 win, ending matters with a kill from Kelsee Zuidema.

In the third set, Grace had to claw back from a big deficit. The Lady Lancers found themselves behind and had to battle back. 

Grace eventually earned a 22-20 advantage and served for the set at 24-21. Spring Arbor remarkably held off three straight set points, and later a fourth, to make the score 25-25. Kaitlin Kerrigan then pounded out a kill on the next rally, and Teel ended the set 27-25 with a service ace.

The fourth set was Grace’s strongest offensively. After hitting at a negative percentage as a team in the third, the Lady Lancers bounced back to smash 12 kills on just four errors in the fourth.

With the score knotted 22-22 late in the fourth, Grace used a kill from Marta Bleed to gain separation. Bleed served the rest of the way, securing the victory with an ace on the final serve.

Bleed led Grace’s offense with 12 kills. Kerrigan earned a double-double with 10 kills and 14 digs.

The Lady Lancers’ serving played a key role in the win with seven aces. Zuidema aced three times to go along with nine kills, and Bleed aced twice.

Taylor Baird produced 44 assists, 13 digs and 4 block assists, Alexa Hill notched 19 digs to tie a career high, and Kari Feddema had seven kills. Savannah Hart had a career-best defensive performance with one solo and six block assists, and Grace Woolsey returned from injury to earn three block assists.

The Lady Lancers stay at home on Saturday against St. Francis at 4 p.m. Saturday’s match will also be Senior Day to honor Kerrigan, Baird, Woolsey and Megan Johnson.