BIG RAPIDS, Mich. – No. 17 Winona State University suffered a pair of straight-set losses on Saturday to close a road trip at the Ferris State University tournament. The Warriors were swept by (RV) Hillsdale College and Wayne State University.
Sophomore Bre Maloney was named to the Ferris State All-Tournament Team at the conclusion of play. The new starting setter averaged over 22 assists/match, totaled 21 kills, 21 digs, four block assists and three aces on the weekend.
In the Warriors' morning match against Hillsdale, who was receiving votes in the AVCA Preseason Poll, the Chargers managed to edge WSU by the narrowest margins in the match. Despite holding a 42-41 advantage in kills, Winona State was bested in the block column by one while Hillsdale recorded four more aces than the Warriors.
Sarah Suits tallied one of Winona's two aces in the match in the first set to give the Warriors' a 19-13 advantage at the end of a five-point run to put WSU in prime position to claim the opening game. The Warriors went on to hold a 23-17 lead late in the set before the Chargers exploded for eight straight points to steal the game. Four of Hillsdale's final eight points were produced on service aces.
Riding their set one momentum, the Chargers hit .400 in the second game and never trailed after a kill by Winona freshman Cori Meyers which gave WSU a brief 6-5 edge. Hillsdale went on to win a 25-19 game for a commanding 2-0 match lead.
Set three featured a back-and-forth battle with the Warriors attempting to extend the match and avoid a sweep. Neither team held more than a four-point lead with Hillsdale ultimately claiming a 25-21 game.
Kills by Maloney and Madison Rizner, followed by a tandem block from the duo, knotted the set at 15-15. Trailing by two late, Megan Flom floored a kill before she and Sophie Wilker teamed up for a block to tie the game again at 19-19. The Chargers proceeded to score six of the final eight points to close out the win.
For the second straight match, Flom led Winona State in kills with 11.
A season-high 27 attacking errors plagued the Warriors in their final match against Wayne State as the team collectively hit under .100 for the second time at the weekend tournament.
After dropping the first two sets by scores of 25-22 and 25-21, respectively, Winona State again looked poised to extend the match into a fourth set.
Meyers floored a kill to halt a three-point Wayne State run and followed it with a service ace. Fellow freshman Hayley Dessner was next to step up with a big kill and even the score at 20-20. Wayne State would not be denied the sweep however, and went on to score five of the next six points for a 25-21 victory.
Meyers had a team-high seven kills in the loss to Wayne State. The rookie recorded 17 kills on the day over both matches.
Winona State (1-3) will return home for a week of practice prior to a road trip to Indianapolis for four more matches next weekend, including two more against ranked foes.
