Box Score
MOORHEAD, Minn. -- The Minnesota State University Moorhead volleyball team battled back from a 1-0 deficit to defeat Northern State, 29-31, 25-12, 25-21, 25-19 in Northern Sun Intercollegiate Conference action Tuesday night in Moorhead, Minn.

MSUM improved to 9-2 overall and 2-1 in the NSIC with the win, while Northern State fell to 9-1 overall and 2-1 in the league.

Sophomore setter Casie Baer had 29 set assists along with nine digs, while junior setter Sam Sullivan added 19 assists and eight digs. Sophomore hitter Kaitlin VanWinkle had 13 kills with a .345 hitting percentage one solo block and six block assists, while freshman hitter Brianna Atkins had 11 kills (.400 hitting percentage), one solo block and six assists. Junior Maggie Gruber had seven kills and a career-high 10 block assists for MSUM. Freshman libero Katie Meyers had 17 digs while sophomore Abby Wolpern had 16.

MSUM hit .252 for the match, compared to .105 for the Wolves. MSUM also had an impressive 18 team blocks, compared to four for Northern.

"We did a good job executing the gameplan," MSUM head coach Tammy Blake said. "That was the best we've blocked all year. And we had balanced hitting across the board."

The Dragons lost a tough first set which saw 17 ties and nine lead changes by a 31-29 score. They seized the momentum in the second set, however.

MSUM led 10-8 but scored nine points in a row -- thanks to a big serving run from Baer and a kill and two block assists by Gruber -- to take a commanding 19-8 lead. The Dragons were never challenged the rest of the way in a 25-10 win, which was capped off by a kill from Gradishar.

The third set followed a similar pattern, at least early on. MSUM led 9-7 but went on an 8-1 run to stretch the advantage to 17-8. Gradishar had two kills during that spurt while Atkins had a kill and two block assists.

Northern fought back to within 21-19 after a kill by Cari McGarvie, but a kill from Gradishar, followed by a Wolves' error, pushed MSUM's lead to 23-19. A kill by Atkins finished the set for MSUM, a 25-21 win.

The final set was tied at 17-17 before the Dragons scored six straight points -- sparked by a service run by Meyers -- to take control with a 23-17 lead. Wolpern added a kill and a block assist during the run. Atkins finished off a 25-19 fourth-set win for MSUM, clinching the match.

Sophomore Morgan Gradishar added eight kills and nine digs for MSUM, while Wolpern and junior Annie Palmquist had six kills each. Meyers led with four ace serves.

The Dragons take to the road this weekend for a pair of NSIC matches. MSUM will face Sioux Falls at 7 p.m. on Friday and then conclude the weekend with a match at No. 9-ranked Southwest Minnesota State on Saturday at 4 p.m.