The No. 14 University of Minnesota Duluth volleyball team suffered its first Northern Sun Intercollegiate Conference (NSIC) loss of the season Friday night, falling to Minnesota State 3-1 (26-24, 22-25, 19-25, 26-28) at Romano Gymnasium. The Bulldogs dropped to 16-2 overall and 9-1 in conference play, while the Mavericks improved to 7-11 overall and 5-5 in the NSIC.
Senior
Madeline Guetzkow led UMD with 15 kills and four service aces, while fellow senior
Paige Decker added 14 kills on .520 hitting and four total blocks. Junior
Xada Johnson finished with nine kills, junior
Elyse Karrels had eight, and freshman
Kenzie Kiminski contributed seven kills and 11 digs.
Junior setter
Ava Jones recorded 40 assists, three service aces, six digs and two block assists.
UMD finished with advantages in kills (56-45), assists (49-39) and digs (52-44), but Minnesota State held the edge in hitting percentage (.227-.182), service aces (11-8) and total blocks (12-8).
The Bulldogs rallied from a six-point deficit in the opening set to take a 1-0 lead. Trailing 15-9, UMD used an 11-5 run to even the score at 20-20, with Decker contributing three kills and a block during the stretch. Minnesota State responded with three straight points to go ahead 23-20, but a Guetzkow block capped a 4-0 UMD run and gave the Bulldogs their first lead of the set at 24-23. The Mavericks tied the score, 24-24, before a Karrels kill and Decker's seventh kill of the set sealed the 26-24 victory.
UMD built a 13-7 lead in the second set behind back-to-back service aces from Jones, but Minnesota State rallied with an 11-5 run to tie the score at 18-18. The teams traded points three more times before the Mavericks closed the set with a 3-0 run to even the match at one set apiece. Johnson led the Bulldogs with five kills in the frame, while Karrels added four.
Minnesota State took the third set 25-19 before the teams battled through a tightly contested fourth set featuring seven lead changes and 13 ties. A Kiminski kill put UMD ahead 13-10, but the Mavericks responded with five straight points to take a 15-13 lead. Jones helped the Bulldogs regain the advantage at 18-15, and UMD later led 21-18.
Minnesota State rallied again, using a 4-1 run to tie the set at 22-22. A block by Decker and Jones put the Bulldogs back in front, 23-22, but the Mavericks won six of the next nine points to close out the match.
The Bulldogs return to Romano Gymnasium Saturday at 4 p.m. for a top-25 matchup against No. 16 St. Cloud State.
