The Hunter Wolverines and the Hillcrest Huskies, after both having extra time off, will shake off the rust and duke it out at 6:00 p.m. on Monday.
Last Thursday, Hunter didn't have quite enough to beat Granger and fell 3-2. While the Wolverines didn't get the win, they did start the game off strong, beating the Lancers 25-20 in the first set.
Hunter took a 2-1 lead headed into the fourth set, but sadly they lost the next two. Once all was said and done, the final score wound up at 20-25, 26-24, 23-25, 25-16, 18-16.
Meanwhile, there's no place like home for Hillcrest, who bounced back after a loss on the road last Tuesday. They came out on top against Kearns by a score of 3-1 last Wednesday. The win continues a trend for the Huskies in their matchups with the Cougars: they've now won three in a row.
Hillcrest had a slow start but a hot finish: after dropping the first set, they turned around to win the next three. The match finished with set scores of 23-25, 25-18, 25-22, 25-22.
Hunter better focus on containing Jamin Gilbert and Eli Santos as the pair were huge in Hillcrest's win. Gilbert had 20 assists and seven digs, while Santos had nine digs and three aces. Those 20 assists gave Gilbert a new career-high. Jael Romo also deserves some recognition as he had his first block of the season.
Hillcrest was lethal from the service line and finished the match with 13 aces. That's the most aces they've managed all season.
Hunter has traveled a rocky road recently, having lost eight of their last ten matches. That's put a noticeable dent in their 6-10 record this season. As for Hillcrest, their victory bumped their record up to 6-8.
Hunter skirted past Hillcrest 3-2 when the teams last played back in March. The rematch might be a little tougher for the Wolverines since the squad won't have the home-court advantage this time around. We'll see if the change in venue makes a difference.
