TIFFIN -- In their home opener, the Heidelberg University volleyball team took down Defiance College, 3-1, on Orange Crush Night inside Seiberling Gymnasium. HU took the first two sets then fell in set three and followed up with a win in set four. HU won 25-17, 25-19, 23-25, 25-20.  

Heidelberg (6-1) extended their win streak to six, the best since the start of the 2019 season. Defiance slipped to 0-4.  

Anamaya Truex led the offensive attack with nine kills while hitting a stunning .692 with no errors. Riley Tople followed with eight kills of her own. 

Setters Bridgette Burrus and Maddie Reed tallied 21 and 20 assists each.

Libero Nicole Thomas had a team-high 18 digs while Grace Dohanyos notched 17 in the win for HU.

In the opening set, Heidelberg held a 16-15 edge before Defiance had four straight attack errors. With breathing room, HU won the set using two kills from Truex and one from Porter.  

The Student Princes went on a 6-0 run midway through the second set, turning a 9-8 edge into a 15-8 lead.  The Yellow Jackets closed to within four at 22-18, but a service error halted their momentum.  

A late surge by Defiance staved off a Heidelberg victory in the fourth set. HU led 23-22 after a kill by Truex, but, as Defiance experienced in the second set, a poorly-timed service error crushed HU's hopes of a sweep.

The Tricolor led 11-6 in the fourth after a 6-0 run aided by four Defiance errors.  From there, Heidelberg peeled off a couple points at a time en route to the win.

The Heidelberg volleyball team travels to Rochester, N.Y. on Friday as they face Geneseo, St. John Fisher and Nazareth over the weekend. They will return to Seiberling on Wednesday, Sept. 13 to face non-conference foe Hiram.