WINONA, Minn. – No. 17 Winona State University only dropped one set over a two-match homestand inside McCown Gymnasium, completing its weekend sweep with a win over Minot State University in four sets on Saturday afternoon. Kate Masberg paced the Warrior offensive attack with 12 kills behind a career-best .667 attacking percentage.
Coming off a sweep of UMary on Friday night, WSU looked a little sluggish in the opening set against the Beavers on Saturday but rallied for three straight wins to take the match. The Warriors won by set scores of 23-25, 25-15, 25-16, 25-17.
Winners of three straight, and nine of its last 11, Winona State improves to 17-4 (9-4 NSIC). Minot State falls to 1-21 (0-13 NSIC) after its ninth straight loss.
Winona State committed 11 unforced errors in an uncharacteristically sloppy first set before shaking the cobwebs off for the remainder of the match. Masberg took over in set two, flooring nine of her 12 kills on nine perfect swings. Behind the junior's precision performance, the Warriors collectively hit .500 with 20 kills compared to just two errors.
Megan Flom led the way in set three to give WSU a 2-1 match lead after the break. The junior drilled five kills on her way to a team-high 18 in the match. Flom hit .486 as she continues to lead the NSIC in attacking percentage this season.
The Warriors led wire-to-wire in the fourth and final set, as they did in set three, to put the Beavers away. Minot State did not go down without a fight though and cut the Warrior lead to 14-12 midway through the game before the home team put their foot on the gas. WSU went on a six-point run from there amid a 9-1 scoring outburst to seal the victory. Flom put down the game-winning kill to cap another big day.
The Warrior defense was a huge part of Saturday's victorious rally – registering a season-high 11 blocks to go along with 76 digs. Sophomore Madison Rizner was a beast at the net with a career-best nine blocks. Cori Meyers chipped in three while Paige Christopher also added a pair of blocks.
Setter Bre Maloney recorded two blocks of her own while dishing out 37 assists to go along with four blocks and six digs. Libero Becca Pagel had a team-high 24 digs and Meyers posted a season-best 15 digs.
The Warriors will travel to No. 21 Upper Iowa University on Thursday, October 31 before returning home later in the week for a match against (RV) Minnesota State Mankato on Saturday, October 2.
