The Valpo volleyball team made quick work of an in-state foe to finish out the Popcorn Classic Saturday afternoon at the ARC, sweeping Purdue Fort Wayne (25-16, 25-17, 25-19). For the third straight weekend, the Beacons finished with a 2-1 record, but for the second time this season, they missed out on a tournament title due to the head-to-head tiebreaker.

How It Happened

• The first set ended up being decided by an early run, as the Beacons reeled off seven straight points on the serve of freshman Lilly Merk (Terre Haute, Ind./Terre Haute South Vigo) to take an 8-3 lead.
• Valpo's lead remained at least four points for the duration of the set, and the Beacons pulled away late, eventually closing the frame on a block by Merk and fellow freshman Kadence Brumitt (Niles, Mich./Brandywine).
• The second set featured multiple runs both ways, with the largest and last one belonging to Valpo. It was Purdue Fort Wayne on the front foot from the first point, jumping out to an 8-3 advantage.
• Valpo answered with 10 of the next 12 points, a run which featured four blocks from the front line, to turn the tables and go up 13-10 past the halfway mark.
• The Mastodons responded by reeling off the next four points to retake the lead, but that just set up one final run by the Beacons, as they rattled off a 12-3 run to close out the set going away — finishing on a kill by sophomore Mara Thomas (Bogart, Ga./Athens Academy).
• Purdue Fort Wayne led early in set three as well, scoring four points in a row to go ahead 8-5. But three kills by senior Elise Swistek (LaPorte, Ind./New Prairie) sparked an 9-0 run which gave the Beacons the lead for good.
• The lead maintained a floor of four points the rest of the way, and Swistek's 13^th kill of the match finished off the sweep.

Inside the Match

• Valpo hit at a .282 clip in the sweep and held a 41-30 edge in kills over the visitors.
• The Beacons continued their strong early-season efforts at the service line, as five different players combined for eight service aces.
• Leading the way on both sides of the ball was Swistek, who closed out a strong weekend with another big performance. Swistek led all players with her 13 kills and hit at a .357 clip, while also racking up a match-best 18 digs defensively.
• Swistek tallied double-doubles in each of the weekend's three matches, giving her 29 such efforts for her career.
• With her 11^th dig on Saturday, Swistek cracked the program's top-20 chart in career digs, finishing the match with 1,191 digs.
• Valpo's attack was balanced behind Swistek, with four other players posting between five and seven kills.
• The Beacons' middles were especially efficient with their swings on Saturday, combining for 14 kills on just 23 swings. Freshman Jessica Pickett (Carmel, Ind./Carmel) hit .583 with seven kills, while Merk notched her seven kills on .545 hitting.
• Pickett also led all players at the net defensively, as she was in on six of Valpo's nine team blocks.
• Thomas and junior Addy Kois (Osceola, Ind./Penn) handed out 16 assists apiece.
• Junior Emma Hickey (Granger, Ind./Penn) joined Swistek in double figures in digs with 14.

Inside the Tournament

• In Saturday's first match, Cornell earned a 3-0 sweep of Miami.
• Cornell and Valpo finished tied atop the tournament standings with respective 2-1 records, but Cornell was crowned tournament champions by virtue of Friday evening's head-to-head victory. Miami and Purdue Fort Wayne both finished 1-2.

Next Up

Valpo (6-3) faces one final weekend of nonconference action before the start of MVC play, trekking to Spartanburg, S.C. for Wofford's Terrier Invite. The tournament opens Friday morning at 10 a.m. CT against Presbyterian.