TIFFIN, Ohio - All that needed to happen on Saturday for Tiffin volleyball to earn the second-seed in the GMAC Championships was to win, and they did so in convincing fashion with a 25-21, 25-13, 26-24 sweep of the Pioneers.
With the victory, the Dragons finish the regular season 17-12 overall and 10-2 in conference play, edging 9-3 Walsh for the two-seed in the upcoming GMAC tournament. As a top four seed, Tiffin earns the right to host their first-ever conference tournament match as a DII member when they host seven-seed Findlay in the quarterfinals on Tuesday.
Tiffin's offense was clicking in the regular-season finale, as the Dragons hit .258 as a team with 48 kills. TU also held Malone to a .157 hitting percentage and kept all of the Pioneers under 10 kills individually.
Jenna Huffman was not held under that mark, as the senior posted 19 kills, seven digs, three blocks, and an ace. Loryn Huffman added 41 assists and 13 digs, while Sam Fallis chipped in a team-high 17 digs.
The Pioneers came out strong in the first set, taking a 10-7 lead. Tiffin responded with seven of the next eight points, however, to take a 14-11 advantage. The Dragons still led 23-21 late before a Jenna Huffman kill and Pioneer error gave Tiffin the set.
Set two started close, with Tiffin taking a 9-8 lead early. The next six points belonged to the Dragons, though, and they went on to close the set on a 16-5 run to take the 2-0 advantage.
Similar to the first set, Malone came out swinging in set three and took an early 11-4 lead. Tiffin battled back, cutting the deficit to 14-12 before finally gaining the lead at 19-18. The two teams traded points until a 24-all tie, before back-to-back kills from Jenna Huffman ended the match.
As mentioned, the Dragons will now turn their attention to the GMAC Championships, hosting Findlay in the quarterfinal on Tuesday, Nov. 19th, at 7:00 p.m.