The seventh-ranked University of Minnesota Duluth volleyball team opened Northern Sun Intercollegiate Conference (NSIC) play on Friday with a 3-0 sweep over the University of Mary.
How it Happened
UMD opened the match by scoring five consecutive points in a row, highlighted by an impressive service ace from senior Cianna Selbitschka. The Bulldogs would look dominant throughout the first half of this set, climbing up to 13-6 before a string of kills from UMary would allow them to climb to double digit points themselves. A late run of six points would help the Dogs grow their lead to 21-12, eventually closing out the first set 25-12 with a block from fifth year seniors Madison Gordon and Hope Schjenken.
UMD would continue to show their strength with an opening string of six points in the second set. A late service ace from Gordon would bring the Dogs to a quick double digit lead, bringing them to 20 points before the Marauders would be able to crack double digits. UMD would again close out the set 25-12 on a service error from UMary.
UMary opened up the third set looking for redemption, scoring their earliest point so far in this match. The two teams would continue to trade points back and forth before UMD would be able to put together a couple of three point groupings throughout the latter half of the match, and grow their lead to 13-7. A strong run of five points for UMD and a double digit lead of 18-8 would prove to be too much ground for the Marauders to cover. Senior Grace Daak would put the final nail into the coffin with a block to win the set 25-14.
A few stellar individual performances would shine through in this conference opener for the Dogs. Selbitschka ended with 16 kills to lead the team, while Gordon led the assists category with 41, and senior Kaylyn Madison would top the chart for digs with 13. UMD had a season-best .488 hitting percentage on a season-high 48 kills for a three-set match. Samantha Paulsen had 13 kills and no hitting errors for the match.
UP NEXT
The Bulldogs (8-1) head north to Minot to take on Minot State on Saturday in their second conference matchup of the year. The match is scheduled to tee off at 1:00 PM.
