DEFIANCE, Ohio – The Hanover Panthers (12-4 overall, 1-0 HCAC) opened Heartland Collegiate Athletic Conference action at Defiance on Saturday, sweeping the Yellow Jackets 3-0 (25-13, 25-15, 25-22).
 
Leading the Panthers was sophomore Elliot Mays (Jeffersonville, Ind.) and sophomore Maddie Robertson (Mitchell, Ind.) with nine kills apiece.
 
In the first set, Hanover used a series of 3-0 runs to claim the 13-8 lead. They blew the contest wide open moments later behind the serve of freshman Abbey McCoy (Indianapolis, Ind.) who helped propel Hanover in front 19-11. They went on to rattle off the final six points for the 25-13 win.
 
The momentum carried into set two with Hanover surging ahead 10-6. However, Defiance looked to rally but were shutdown by senior Casey Dunn (Fort Thomas, Ky.), 15-9. With the set well in hand, Robertson handled the rest connecting for a kill that secured the 25-15 victory.
 
The final set saw a back-an-forth battle with Hanover finding themselves on the wrong side of a 14-10 deficit. But the Panthers remained poise scoring seven straight points to flip the script before Robertson once again secured the sweep.
 
Hanover returns to action on Sunday, Oct. 1 when they travel to Adrian.