ALBION, Mich. – The Adrian College women's volleyball team headed to Albion College to take on the No. 6-seeded Britons. The Bulldogs entered their 18th conference tournament since 1999.
Adrian entered a hostile environment Tuesday night, seeking their first tournament win since 2023. The first set was controlled by Albion, as they jumped out to an aggressive 16-3 lead. Kendall Sullivan tallied three kills, but the Bulldogs struggled to slow down the Britons' attack. Albion secured a commanding 25-9 first-set win.
The Bulldogs fought in the second set. Kills by Khloe Budzynski and Avery O'Shaughnessy brought Adrian within two points. A 6-1 run by the Brits helped them add some cushion to their lead. Adrian struggled to find momentum, but hung close with Albion. Ultimately, Albion secured the 2-0 lead in the match with a 25-14 victory in the set.
With their backs against the wall, Adrian refused to go down without a fight. The Bulldogs sprinted out to a 5-1 lead, highlighted by four kills from Lauren Boehmer. A five-point run from Albion helped the Britons take an 11-7 lead. Lauren Boehmer added two more kills to her ledger to bring Adrian within one point, before Kora Nicolanti evened up the score with a service ace. Both teams helped each other out with errors, but Adrian took back the lead with a Morgan Wood kill. Two huge blocks from Kendall Sullivan and Peyton Oertel extended the Adrian lead to 24-22. The Britons' Carly Frank rattled off two kills to even things up before Adrian called a timeout. Out of the timeout, Albion put the game away with two more points, earning a 26-24 win.
Adrian's season concludes after making their first MIAA Tournament appearance since 2024. The Bulldogs finish the year with a 6-15 overall record and a 2-6 mark in MIAA play.
