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They always say it's to tough to beat a team three times in one season -- the University of Minnesota Duluth found that out the hard way on Thursday night, dropping a NCAA II Central Regional Quarterfinal matchup to Winona State University in four sets.

After taking the opening set, the Warriors answered with three consecutive sets to take a 3-1 match victory. UMD hit just .152 on the match to Winona State's .237 attack percentage. Both teams picked up nine blocks, while the Bulldogs grabbed 87 digs, four more than the Warriors.

The loss caps off the collegiate careers of three UMD seniors -- middle blocker Sydnie Mauch, outside hitter Taylor Wissbroecker, and defensive specialist Teal Tomaszewski. Mauch ends her stellar career ranking first on the all-time Bulldog leaderboard in blocks (390), 13th in kills (1,087), and fourth in hitting percentage (.342).

Wissbroecker finished the match with a career-high 24 digs and added nine kills. Tomaszewski entered the match for four points in the final set, picking up a pair of digs.

Offensively, sophomore right side hitter Sarah Kelly racked up 14 kills while hitting a solid .313. Sophomore libero Erin Schindler recorded a team-leading 28 digs, while freshman setter Emily Torve assisted 43 times. For Winona State, Taylor Goar led all players with 18 kills on 50 attacks.

UMD put out its best performance in the opening set, hitting at a .311 clip -- the highest of the match for either team. With the Bulldogs holding a slim 12-10 advantage, UMD ran off the next four points to extend a six point lead. WSU clawed back, cutting the deficit to 24-21, but Wissbroecker found a hole in the Warrior defense to give the Bulldogs a 1-0 lead in the match.

Winona State fresponded by knocking UMD out of its offensive rhythm the remainder of the match, holding the Bulldogs to a hitting percentage of under .150 in the following three frames. The Warriors did not surrender a lead to UMD in the second set, eventually concluding at a 25-15 mark.

Much like the second game, WSU held the third set lead for nearly the entire duration. With the score tied at 12, Winona State rattled off four straight points and never looked back, cruising to a 25-19 win and holding off any Bulldog efforts to come back.

The Bulldogs showed fight in the fourth frame, but ultimately dropped the set and match by a 25-22 margin. The Warriors held a late 23-17 lead and UMD responded with four straight points, capped off by a kill from Kelly. Maria Wrage was able to conclude the match by picking up her 13th kill, advancing Winona State to the second round of the regional in its first ever NCAA Tournament appearance.

UMD ends the season with a 25-5 (17-3 NSIC) record, while WSU moves to 27-5 (16-4 NSIC) on the year.