WINONA, Minn. – No. 15 Winona State University came up just shy of the signature victory its been seeking, dropping a five-set thriller to No. 2 Southwest Minnesota State University on Friday night in McCown Gymnasium.
The Top 15 showdown lived up to its billing as WSU rallied from a 2-1 deficit, pushing the Mustangs to their limit in five sets while exhilarating the crowd to open Homecoming weekend.
SMSU avoided its second loss of the season, surviving the Warriors' best shot by scores of 20-25, 25-18, 25-15, 19-25, 15-10.
With the match tied at one game apiece, the Warriors found themselves trailing 10-5 out of the break in set three. Five straight Winona points, including three kills by Danielle Rampart, evened the score before the Mustangs took over.
SMSU halted the rally with a side out and proceeded to take a 15-11 advantage. From there the Warriors scored only four points to the finish line as the Mustangs ran away with the win.
Following the decisive win, SMSU raced out to a 3-0 lead in the fourth set and looked to close out their road triumph, but the Warriors remained in striking distance. Eight ties and three lead changes ensued with WSU pulling in front for good at 15-14 on a kill by McKenna Larsen.
Sarah Suits followed with a service ace as the home team went on a modest four-point run which proved to be too much for the Mustangs to overcome. Trailing 23-17, SMSU scored back-to-back points to make it a four-point game before a pair of Mustang errors gave Winona the win and forced a fifth set.
The teams traded blows and extended rallies in the final set and battled to a 10-10 deadlock before the Mustangs rattled off five consecutive points to avoid the upset and seal their victory.
Maria Wrage fueled the Warriors' offense in the set one win, flooring nine of her match and season-best 17 kills on the night.
Winona scuffled in set two, committing eight errors, and only managed a .209 hitting percentage in the third game. The home team responded with a dominant .464 clip in set four while holding SMSU to a .194 clip.
The difference in the match was the Mustangs' precision in set five as they hit .357 and did not suffer a single attacking error.
The Mustangs recorded nine service aces in the match, including a pair in the final game. SMSU totaled 89 digs compared to 87 by WSU – the Warriors' third-highest count of the year. Becca Pagel led all players with 29.
Rampart finished the match with 14 kills and 14 digs, followed by 10 kills apiece from Lauren Kudronowicz and Maria Fruechte. McKenna Larsen stuffed the stat sheet with seven kills, 15 digs and 52 assists.
SMSU's Taylor Reiss led all players with 28 kills.
Winona State falls to 14-6 (8-4 NSIC) while SMSU improves to 19-1 (11-1 NSIC).
The Warriors conclude their current homestand on Saturday with a 5 p.m. match against (RV) Sioux Falls.
