Hope volleyball raises banner, earns 'redemption' win by thrashing No. 12 North Park

HOLLAND - Last year's banner has motivated the Hope College volleyball team throughout the offseason and into this anticipated season.

Finishing NCAA runner-up was a spectacular accomplishment, but also left the team hungry.

The NCAA runner-up banner was raised at DeVos Fieldhouse on Wednesday and is now a constant reminder of not only the motivation, but the standard that the program continues to bear.

It motivated No. 4 Hope to a 25-14, 25-10, 25-15 destruction of No. 12 North Park on Wednesday at home.

Of course, there was more motivation since the Flying Dutch were swept by North Park last season, one of their three losses. Plus Hope was looking to build on losses to No. 1 Juniata and Wisconsin-Oshkosh .

"It was a lot of those things that came together, and we were firing on all cylinders. We talked about leaning in and staying hungry. We weren't satisfied with how last week went," Hope senior Addie VanderWeide said. "It was cool to embrace the moment and remember what we went through, but it also turned up the notch that we want more than that - we want to be champions. This is pushing us to be our best selves."

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After struggling offensively last week, Hope was masterful against a top 12 team in the country.

Collectively, the Flying Dutch hit .444 for the match. Alison DeWeerd had 11 kills and hit .588, VanderWeide had 10 kills and hit .450 and Annie Lockett had nine kills and hit .562. Lauren Lee dished out 40 assists and Samantha Seib had 18 digs.

"We have really worked on our offense and Lauren did such a great job of moving the ball around and staying deceptive. Our hitters started making some really good, aggressive reactions to that. Our hitters stepped up and challenged in ways that we had been a little predictable," Hope coach Becky Schmidt said. "They got us in three sets last year. There was definitely a feeling of a revenge match. They are a really good team and there was an opportunity for redemption."

It is the third banner in DeVos Fieldhouse for volleyball, following the 2009 Final Four banner and 2014 NCAA championship banner.

In between those seasons, Hope has been close, earning several regional finalist and semifinalist finishes.

Last year, the team reached the NCAA finals with four consecutive five-set wins before falling to back-to-back champion Juniata in the finals.

It is a program that has raised its level to that of an NCAA Division I program under Schmidt.

The tradition that Hope has built will lead to more banners, and if the players need a reminder - all they have to do is look up.

Contact sports editor Dan D’Addona at Dan.D’Addona@hollandsentinel.com. Follow him on X, formerly known as  Twitter @DanDAddona or Facebook @HollandSentinelSport s.

This article originally appeared on The Holland Sentinel: Hope volleyball raises banner, earns 'redemption' win by thrashing No. 12 North Park