AURORA, Ill. -- The Wayne State University volleyball team (7-12) fell in the opening match of the Mizuno Midwest Regional Crossover on Friday against Bellarmine (8-12) inside the Great Lakes Center.

The eighth annual Mizuno Midwest Region Volleyball Crossover is the nation's largest collegiate volleyball tournament, Mizuno will be the title sponsor for the regional volleyball event which will pit 16 Great Lakes Valley Conference (GLVC) volleyball teams against 16 institutions representing the Great Lakes Intercollegiate Athletic Conference (GLIAC) including four programs from the Great Midwest Athletic Conference (GMAC).

HOW IT HAPPENED
- The Knights led 8-4 to begin the first set and forced Tim Koth to take a timeout. The momentum stayed with the Knights as they extended their lead to 16-7 and eventually 22-10 en route to winning the set 25-16.

- In the second set, WSU held onto a 5-4 advantage after a BU attack error. Hailey Richardson (New Boston, Mich. / Huron) kept the Warriors on top 6-5 with a kill. A 5-0 Bellarmine run later in the set tied the two teams at 11-11. The Green & Gold responded with three straight points including two kills from Hannah Moore (Louisville, Ky. / Assumption). BU regained the lead 17-16 with a 5-1 run. Richardson gave WSU a one-point lead with another kill at 19-18 and a BU attack error put WSU on top 22-21 before the Knights captured the final four points to win 25-22.

- The Knights led 6-4 in the early stages of the third set. Emily Norscia (Livonia, Mich. / Livonia Churchill) capped a 5-0 BU run with a kill to give the Warriors a 10-9 lead. An Ellie Rodriguez (Grand Rapids, Mich. / Catholic Central) ace followed by a BU attack error WSU led 16-12. Wayne State won the race to 20 and led 24-18 after a Norscia kill. BU went on a 4-0 run to trim deficit to 24-22 but another Norscia kill forced a fourth set as WSU won 25-22.

- The Warriors won the first three points of the fourth set. A combo block from Norscia and Grace Frazee (Grand Rapids, Mich. / Grand Rapids Christian) kept WSU ahead 8-5. A kill from Frazee gave WSU a 14-13 lead. Bellarmine went on an 8-2 run to take a 21-16 lead. The Warriors came back to tie the set at 22-22. The set remained tied at 23-23, 24-24, 25-25 before BU finished the set on a 3-1 run to win the set 28-26 and the match 3-1.

LEADING THE WARRIORS
- Moore finished with a match-high 17 kills and 44 swings. Norscia posted 13 kills.
- Maddison Smith tallied 35 assists while Rodriguez (15) and Smith (10) both collected 10 or more digs.

UP NEXT
- Play continues in Aurora, Ill. as WSU will meet Southern Indiana at 10 AM CT and St. Joseph's at 4 PM CT.