MARQUETTE, Mich. -- The Wayne State University volleyball program (12-2, 5-1 GLIAC) is putting together what could be a special season.  After playing nine-straight matches inside the friendly walls of the Matthaei, that trend continued nearly 400 miles away at Northern Michigan (9-7, 3-3 GLIAC) on Friday night.  Wayne State captured a hard fought five-set battle by winning games two, four and five.

HOW IT HAPPENED
• Wayne State led 7-4 early in the first following a 5-0 run capped by a Mikayla Shell (Croswell, Mich. / Croswell-Lexington) kill.  Northern Michigan erased that advantage with a quick 4-0 run.  The see-saw affair continued as the Warriors regained the lead, 12-11 after back-to-back points by Michelle Asiedu (Holland, Ohio / Springfield).  WSU led 15-14, 17-15 and 19-17 before the opening set was tied at 20-20.  The Wildcats won five of the last seven points to capture the set, 25-23.

• Hailey Richardson (New Boston, Mich. / Huron) had a dominant night and collected a kill early in the second set to give WSU a 5-3 lead.  Three straight blocks from Asiedu followed by a kill from the junior middle blocker powered a 6-0 run where NMU used both of its timeouts and saw WSU pull ahead 12-6.  An 8-0 run later in the game would prove to be too much for the home side to overcome and the Green & Gold tied the match at one win apiece with a 25-13 triumph.

• The Wildcats responded by winning the third set 25-23.  WSU led 20-18 after an NMU attack error but the Wildcats took seven of the final 10 points to take a 2-1 match lead.

•  Three straight errors from the home team gave WSU an 8-4 lead in the fourth set.  Consecutive aces from Brittany Guldan (West Bloomfield, Mich. / Walled Lake Central) extended the advantage to 15-8.  NMU trimmed the deficit to three at 23-20 before WSU was able to force a fifth set with a 25-21 win.  Avery Punches (Rockford, Mich.) delivered the set-winning point.

• Northern Michigan won the first point in the fifth set but then the Warriors rallied for the next seven points, powered by two kills and two blocks from Asiedu.  Two straight kills from Guldan made it 13-6 and the player of the night, Richardson sealed the victory for WSU with a kill to give the visitors a 15-9 victory.

WORTH NOTING
• Wayne State won its third five-setter on Friday night.

• Guldan notched her third match of 50 or more assists with 53 helpers against NMU.

• Richardson collected 20 or more kills for the second time this season and posted a .33 hitting percentage to pace the WSU offense.

FROM COACH KOTH
"It was a great road win for the Warriors.  We made an adjustment early with our blocking and it really improved during the match.  Our serving was great tonight and really impacted Northern Michigan.  It was definitely the difference in the match."

UP NEXT
• Wayne State will stay in the U.P. and meet Michigan Tech on Saturday afternoon with first serve set for 4 p.m.