The SVSU volleyball team returned to GLIAC play at the Cardinal Gym this weekend, hosting the Ashland Eagles and the Lake Erie Storm on Friday and Saturday.
The Cardinals lost a competitive match to a good Ashland squad on Friday and bounced back to beat Lake Erie on Saturday afternoon.
The Cardinals’ Friday night meeting with Ashland, the GLIAC South division’s first place team, ended with a loss in five sets (24-26, 25-18, 18-25, 25-15, 11-15).
Neither team played strong in the first set, with each squad posting a very low hitting percentage.
The Cardinals fought back to tie the score at 24 after being down 22-19, but they were unable to close the game out, losing the next two points.
The Cardinals came back to win the second set but fell behind 5-0 in the third set and were unable to overcome the deficit.
Once again, the Cardinals came back strong after losing the third set to snatch the fourth from the Eagles, but they could not win back-to-back sets to close out the game, falling 15-11 in the final set.
“We just were not able to execute during crucial moments throughout the match” said junior outside hitter Andrea Brigham. “I was proud that we were able to shut down some of Ashland’s key outside hitters with our blocking, and there were definitely some good things to take away from tonight.”
Tamara Heller led the Cardinals with a huge game, compiling 16 kills, 13 digs and two aces. McKenzie Schuster added 12 kills and three blocks to pace SVSU.
On Saturday, SVSU was able to rebound after the tough loss to Ashland, beating the Lake Erie Storm convincingly in four sets (25-15, 23-25, 25-11, 25-15).
The Cardinals held the Storm to a -.067 hitting percentage in the match while hitting .238 as a team. The biggest difference was on the defensive end for SVSU, specifically at the net. SVSU tallied 16 blocks compared to just five for the Storm.
“Not only did our service receive improve, but we also did an awesome job at the net, both attacking and blocking,” Brigham said.
Kaylee Schmitt had 11 kills with a .500 hitting percentage to go along with seven blocks at the net. All three statistics were team bests. Kelly Vellucci had 40 assists, three kills, five digs and five blocks in the game as well for the Cardinals. This was the twelfth time this season that Vellucci has recorded at least 40 assists in a match.
SVSU is now 17-5 overall and 7-4 in GLIAC play, which puts them in fourth place in the GLIAC North division. The Cardinals will head to Lake Superior State University on Friday, Oct. 30, to play the 0-18 Lakers. Following that, the team will travel to Northwood University on Saturday, Oct. 31.
