Ferris State Falls To Michigan Tech In Weekend Volleyball Finale In Houghton

Big Rapids, Mich. - The nationally 25th-ranked Ferris State University women's volleyball squad suffered a 3-1 setback to Michigan Tech in Great Lakes Intercollegiate Athletic Conference (GLIAC) play on Saturday (March 13) as the two schools wrapped up weekend action in Houghton.

The Huskies pulled off the weekend sweep at MTU's Student Development Complex Gymnasium by taking Saturday's finale following a tightly-contested 3-2 win on Friday afternoon.

In Saturday's match, the Huskies seized control early, winning the first set 25-14 and the second by a 25-17 score to grab a 2-0 lead overall. The Bulldogs battled back to claim the third set 25-23, but MTU finished off the victory with a 25-13 triumph in the fourth.

The Huskies moved to 5-1 overall and in the GLIAC with the two wins while FSU dropped to 5-3 overall in conference action.

MTU hit an impressive .356 overall in Saturday's contest while limiting the Bulldogs to a .161 attack figure. The Huskies totaled 73 kills with only 16 errors on 160 attempts compared to FSU's 40 kills and 18 errors on 137 attacks.

Additionally, the Huskies held a 71-63 margin in total digs and came up with nine blocks and three aces.

The Bulldogs were led by middle hitter Samantha Hermann, who had 11 kills in the contest. Senior hitter Katie O'Connell added 10 kills and 11 digs. The Bulldogs also got a team-high 27 digs from libero Nina Gorgijevska with Kaylee Maat notching 35 assists from the setter position. Middle hitter Kira Merkle added nine kills and Maat finished with 12 digs as well.

The Huskies were led by Olivia Ghormley's match-high 20 kills. Anna Jonynas added 15 kills and shared the team lead with 15 digs along with Megan Utlak. Meanwhile, Morgan Radtke finished with 10 digs while Maggie Peterson had 14 digs. Setter Laura De Marchi had a big afternoon with 61 assists and 13 digs.

The Bulldogs will square off against Northwood in a home-and-home series on Friday and Saturday, March 19-20. FSU visits Northwood on Friday night for a 7 p.m. (ET) league tilt before the two teams head to Big Rapids for a 5 p.m. (ET) contest on Saturday at the Ewigleben Sports Arena.

(Highlights Courtesy of Michigan Tech)