Box Score The Hamline volleyball team has 11 days to get ready for the MIAC season. But you could hardly blame them if they asked the league if they could start playing right now.

HU swept three foes at their annual Invitational tournament Saturday at Hutton Arena. Two of those matches were touch and go all the way. But all's well that ends well and the Pipers advanced to 7-0 on the 20145 season. ,Hamline is the only MIAC team that is still undefeated.,

In the opening match, HU was pushed hard by UW-River Falls. The Pipers, however, pushed back to record a 3-1 win. Four hours later, HU held off UW-Superior, 30-28, in their first set and then took 25-21 and 25-20 victories for a 3-0 sweep. The Pipers then finished their day hitting a solid .280 in sweeping past Crown, 25-21, 25-8, 25-13.,

Katie Ayres,(17) led a balanced 56 kill attack with 13 in the win over the Falcons. Caitlyn Gottwald,(1) added 11 kills and sophomore, Jena Meyer, chipped in with 10. HU needed all of that offense ,-- and then some -- to gain the 25-23, 25-23, 22-25, 25-23 decision.,

Vassi Prattas,and,Amelia Jensen,shared setup honors with 23 and 21 assists apiece.,Lynsey Reimer,led all comers with 29 digs with able assistance from,Michelle Mattke,(13) and Jensen (10).

As the scores indicated, it was tight all the way. HU had to rally from behind in both of the first two sets to gain the victories. A similar strait happed in the third game with the Pipers rallying from a six point deficit to tie the set at 22. WRF, however, connected on the final three points to hand the Pipers their first set loss of the season. Hamline came out swinging in the fourth, jumping to a 6-0. The Falcons flew back and took a 9-7 advantage only to see HU claw right back. It went back and forth from there until the Pipers got the last point and claimed their second win in eight days over the Falcons.

HU was also balanced against the Yellowjackets.,Beth Goodman,,a freshman, had nine kills with Meyer, ,Paige Walters,and,Julia Zolnosky,adding eight each. Prattas (20) and Jensen (17) again shared the assist role with Reimer contributing 24 digs. A solid defense held UWS to an .097 hitting percentage for the match.,

HU coach,Becky Egan,used 15 players in the win over the Storm.,Katie Ayres,was the lone Piper in double digits for kills. Her 10 kills in 15 attempts ends up tied for fifth best all time in school history with a .667 attack mark. Jensen (18) and Prattas (14) again shared setting honors with Reimer recording 22 of the Pipers' 49 digs. HU improved their hitting percentage in each set, starting with a .239 in the opener, advancing to .241 and finishing at .400 in the final set.,

Hamline opens MIAC play against Carleton September 17 at Hutton Arena.