Wayne State (11-1, 3-0), ranked #17 in NCAA DII, used consistent runs throughout the match to record a 3-0 (25-19, 25-18, 25-16) NSIC victory over the University of Sioux Falls (5-8, 0-4) on Tuesday night at the Stewart Center.
The Cougars, which dropped their fourth straight NSIC match, struggled in serving and overall hitting percentage. While Wayne State had five service aces and four errors, USF had four service aces and 13 service errors. For the match, USF hit .168 with 34 kills on 101 attacks.
A bright spot for the Cougars was the play of USF senior Samantha Lovell, who had a solid game with nine kills on 14 attacks for a .643 hitting percentage. She also had four block assists to lead USF, which finished with five total team blocks. Junior Michelle Ritland, senior Kate Hart and sophomore Jordan Calef each had six kills. Sophomore Abby Folk led the Cougars with 16 digs.
For Wayne State, junior Katie Hughes and sophomore Alyssa Frauendorfer each had eight kills. The Wildcats hit .260 for the match with 37 kills on 100 attacks.
In the opening set, USF opened up an 8-4 lead before Wayne State gained control with solid hitting. The Wildcats rallied with a 7-1 run to grabbed an 11-9 lead. After a kill by Ritland drew the Cougars within 14-13, the Wildcats had an 11-6 run to close out the set. Hughes had four kills for Wayne State which hit. 290 with 12 kills on 31 attacks. USF, which had three kills from Caleb, Hart and Lovell, hit .152 with 11 kills on 33 attacks.
With the second set tied at 4-4, the Wildcats had a 6-2 run to grab a 10-6 lead. USF closed to 12-10 on a kill by Johnson. From there, Wayne State had a 7-2 run to grab control of the set. Wayne State hit .244 getting 14 kills on 41 attacks. USF had a better hitting percentage in the second set at .265 as they converted 11-of-34 kills with just two errors. Calef had three kills to lead the Cougars.
In the final set, the Wildcats took an early 8-3 lead before the Cougars rallied with a 5-1 run to draw within 9-8 on a kill by Lovell. Wayne State, which hit .250 in the set (11 kills on 28 attacks), asserted control with a 9-3 run for an 18-11 advantage and went on to a 25-16 win. USF had 12 kills on 34 attacks but committed nine errors for a .088 hitting percentage.
USF will continue a three-match home-stand with Bemidji State visiting the Stewart Center for a match at 7 p.m., Friday, Sept. 26. On Saturday, the Cougars will host Minnesota-Crookston at 7 p.m.
