HAMMOND, Ind. — Parkside volleyball (13-7, 5-5 GLIAC) split its opening two matches at the 2026 Midwest Volleyball Crossover on Friday, falling to No. 22 Indianapolis 3-0 before bouncing back with a 3-0 sweep of Walsh. The Rangers battled through a competitive third set against Indianapolis, falling 25-23, before responding against Walsh with a season-high 10 service aces and holding the Cavaliers to an .089 hitting percentage. Parkside will return to the court Saturday for its placement match to close out the tournament.
Parkside vs No.22 UIndy
UIndy moved in front early and, after
Monica Lukasiewicz's kill put Parkside within 4-2, scored the next six points to build a 10-2 lead.
Emily Zaper stopped that stretch with a kill and later added another, while
Maia Olson, Lukasiewicz,
Sierra Kilbourn and
Avary Polavin helped Parkside trade points through the middle of the set. Parkside pulled as close as 15-8 on consecutive kills by Lukasiewicz and Kilbourn, but UIndy answered with kills from Makenzie Pflederer, Allison Jansen and Maddie Berger to keep the margin wide. UIndy scored the final five points, closing the set with three Berger kills and one from Grace Portwood for a 25-11 win.
After UIndy scored the first two points, Parkside evened the second set at 2-2 on kills by
Monica Lukasiewicz and Polavin, then moved back within 8-7 on a Zaper service ace. UIndy stretched the lead to 11-7 behind consecutive kills by Maddie Berger, and although Polavin and Lukasiewicz helped Parkside stay close through the middle of the set, UIndy held a 16-13 edge. UIndy pushed ahead 23-16 late before Parkside got a kill from Polavin kill from Kilbourn and a block by Lukasiewicz and Kilbourn to cut it to 24-20, but Maddie Lynch closed the set with a kill for a 25-20 UIndy win.
Parkside trailed 9-6 in the third set before Zaper had a kill and served consecutive aces to pull the score even, and
Sierra Kilbourn's kill from
Natalie Harris put the visitors ahead 10-9. UIndy tied it at 10-10, but Parkside moved back in front at 11-10 and later built an 18-15 edge after
Dani Kopacz's kill and a
Lucy Russ service ace. After
Avary Polavin's kill made it 20-17, UIndy scored the next three points, including an Amaree Haralson ace and an Allison Jansen kill, to tie the set at 20-20. Kilbourn answered for a 21-20 lead, but UIndy moved ahead late, reached set point at 24-22, and closed the set 25-23 after
Maia Olson's kill kept Parkside within one.
Natalie Harris led Parkside with 19 digs and reached 2,000 career kills in the match, marking a major career milestone.
Lucy Russ recorded a team-high 20 assists, while
Avary Polavin paced the Rangers with 10 kills, marking her third consecutive match with at least 10 kills, and added three digs.
Emily Zaper contributed nine kills, a team-high three service aces, 10 digs and a team-high 12.0 points.
Sierra Kilbourn added eight kills on a .261 hitting percentage, three digs and one block.
Parkside vs Walsh University
After Walsh scored the first two points, the Rangers answered with four straight, including consecutive
Avary Polavin kills, to move ahead 4-2 in the opening set. The teams traded small swings through the middle of the set before Walsh scored four straight from a 14-14 tie to go in front 18-14. The Rangers worked back from a 20-18 deficit with a
Dani Kopacz kill, a Walsh attack error and a
Lucy Russ ace to take a 21-20 lead, and after Walsh tied it at 21-21,
Sierra Kilbourn put the Rangers back in front with a kill. The Rangers closed the set with a
Monica Lukasiewicz block, another Walsh attack error and an
Emily Zaper ace to finish a 25-21 win.
The Rangers trailed 12-6 in the second set after Walsh built the early margin, including a service ace that made it a six-point gap. Kilbourn started a response with a kill, Polavin followed with a block and two kills during the push, and another Polavin block helped the Rangers cut the deficit to 14-13. After Walsh moved back in front 17-14,
Samantha Molenhouse served an ace and the Rangers pulled even at 18-18 before
Emily Zaper's kill tied it again at 19-19. A Walsh service error made it 20-20, and the Rangers took control from there with a Kilbourn-Lukasiewicz block, a Zaper ace, Polavin kill and Kilbourn's closing kill for a 25-21 set win.
Walsh built an early 8-3 lead in the third set before the Rangers worked back behind a Kilbourn kill, a
Maia Olson kill and a Molenhouse service ace to get within 9-8. After Walsh moved back in front 13-12, Lukasiewicz tied the set with a kill, added another for a 14-13 Rangers lead and Russ followed with consecutive aces during a run that pushed the advantage to 18-13. The Rangers kept the separation at 20-14 on a Kilbourn block and, after Walsh's final point made it 20-15, Polavin and Kilbourn delivered kills to move the set to 23-15.
Maia Olson's block brought up set point, and a Walsh attack error finished a 25-15 Rangers win.
Rangers Top Performers
Avary Polavin led the Rangers with 11 kills on a .348 hitting percentage and a team-high 13.5 points, adding three blocks, including two solo blocks.
Natalie Harris recorded a team-high 16 digs, marking her ninth consecutive match with 16 or more digs.
Lucy Russ paced the team with 19 assists and three service aces while adding nine digs.
Monica Lukasiewicz tallied five kills without an error on nine attempts for a .556 hitting percentage, marking her second consecutive match hitting at least .556. She also contributed three blocks, including two solo blocks.
Maia Olson led the Rangers with four blocks, including one solo block, and added two service aces.
Up Next,
Parkside Volleyball will await its opponent for Saturday's placement match at the 2026 Midwest Volleyball Crossover on October 17.
For all things Parkside Volleyball, including links to live coverage, visit ParksideRangers.com/coverage.
