Coming off a perfect weekend at the Javelina Volleyball Classic, the University of Minnesota Duluth stuck to its winning ways using its potent offense.

The 14th-ranked Bulldogs captured a pair of victories Friday from No. 20 Michigan Technological University and Northern Michigan University on the opening day of the UP North Tournament at the SDC Gym in Houghton, Mich., hosted by Michigan Tech. UMD won in straight sets (25-19, 25-13, 25-19) against previously unbeaten Michigan Tech (4-1) in the morning session then followed up with a four set triumph (25-15, 25-18, 26-28, 25-16) over Northern Michigan (3-3) during the afternoon slate.

The Bulldogs continued to have their way offensively as it marched to the tune of hitting over the .300-mark for the fifth and sixth consecutive matches to open the 2024 campaign. The wins over the two premier U.P. teams have UMD starting the season 6-0 for the second time in the past three seasons. UMD, who claimed victories at home last season against the Huskies and the Wildcats, are 33-9 all-time against Michigan Tech and 31-16 versus Northern Michigan.

The No. 20 Huskies were coming off a pair of wins against ranked teams last week but the Bulldogs' offense was on point again. Coming into the week ranked fourth in the nation, UMD hit .325 for the match and clubbed 48 kills, a season high for a three-set match, including a resounding 19 kills in the final frame.

Five Bulldogs collected at least seven kills with senior right side hitter Samantha Paulsen leading the charge. Paulsen, the native of Chisago Lakes, Minn., hammered home 15 of her 25 attempts, leading both sides in kills. Paulsen was also a presence at the net defensively, racking up a match-high six blocks. Sophomore middle blocker Kylie Broten also chipped in five blocks as well. Her sophomore teammate, right side hitter Madeline Guetzkow had some timely swings, stopping Husky charges and finished with eight kills. Senior setter Maddi Kealy whipped up 25 assists and posted a pair of aces in the contest to lead all players. Graduate defensive specialist Kaylyn Madison scooped up 18 digs, a match-high, as UMD held Michigan Tech to a .165 hitting clip.

The focal point for the Bulldogs was simple, limit Meg Raabe and give Tess Hayes, the Great Lakes Intercollegiate Athletic Conference Setter of the Week, no options on the other end. Raabe accounted for only 10 kills with four errors and Hayes had a season-low 26 assists.

The Huskies got out to leads in the first two sets before UMD broke away. The Bulldogs mustered five of their seven aces in the opening set to pull away. In the second, Paulsen and Guetzkow registered five kills each as UMD hit a set high .344 and sided out at a 84 percent clip to breeze to a 12-point second-set win. The Bulldogs went wire-to-wire in the third as Paulsen added six more kills and senior outside hitter Payton Addink thumped home five herself to close out the match.

The Wildcats didn't fare better. The Bulldogs thumped home 63 kills while hitting .357 for the match. Northern Michigan posted a mere 47 kills and were outmatched in the block (11-3) and dig (73-44) departments as well.

Paulsen was the headliner again on offense as she spearheaded the offense with 19 kills, matching her career high. Graduate outside hitter Cianna Selbitschka gathered her second double-double of the year on 15 kills and 13 digs. She wasn't the only Bulldog to accomplish the feat as Kealy produced her own with 27 assists -- one shy of tying her personal best -- and 13 digs, her new career high. Freshman setter Ava Jones also posted her best outing with 22 assists in the victory.

UMD never trailed in the opening set as it finally gained traction after Selbitchka broke the 9-9 tie on a kill and Paulsen slammed down three consecutive points immediately that propelled the Bulldogs to a 25-15 win. Set two was much of the same but the lead changed hands on three occasions. Selbitschka started a 5-0 run midway through the second that gave UMD the cushion to nab the set. The Bulldogs had a chance to close the match in three but missed out on their only attempt at match point that allowed a scrappy Wildcat squad to sneak in and force a fourth set.

The final set was much like the third set. After seeing the third frame either tied or changed hands 14 times, UMD and NMU battled back-and-forth until Jones was able to direct the offense and find open opportunities for Guetzkow, sophomore hitter Paige Decker and Selbitschka. Senior defensive specialist Emma Kujawa and Decker served UMD into an 8-2 set-deciding run to fend off the Wildcats.

The Bulldogs square off against the University of Findlay (4-1) tomorrow to wrap up the final slate of the tournament. First serve versus the Oilers is scheduled to begin at 11:30 a.m CT.