GRAND JUNCTION, Colo. – MSU Moorhead volleyball would extend its win streak to four to open day two at the Maverick Fall Classic before dropping the tournament nightcap.
MSUM would begin the afternoon commanding their match against Cal Poly Humboldt, 3-0. To close the second day, MSUM fell in three sets to 15th-ranked Colorado Mesa.
Dragons 3, Lumberjacks 0
Set Scores: 25-21, 25-11, 25-20
MSUM would pick up where they left off from Thursday night, racing out to a 10-6 lead in the first set. Similar to Thursday, the Dragons would spread the ball out on offense as
Halle Erickson,
Mya Pfeifer,
Emily Ramsay and
Abby Thompson would register kills early in the frame. Erickson and Pfeifer would team up for a block assist as well in the stretch.
The Dragon lead would grow to six points (16-10) midway through the set as Thompson downed a service ace. Cal Poly Humboldt would respond with an 8-0 run to regain the lead, 18-16, forcing an MSUM timeout. Out of the timeout, Pfeifer and
Raiah Mandell would grab a block assist to snap the Lumberjack scoring run. Pfeifer and
Brielle Riess would put the Dragons back in front, 19-18, shortly thereafter. Tied at 21 points, MSUM would close the frame on a 4-0 run led by a block solo from Thompson.
While Cal Poly Humboldt would move in front 3-1 to begin set two, MSUM would eventually take the lead, 7-5.
Kiara Olesch added a service ace to jumpstart the Dragons in the frame while back-to-back block assists continued the momentum. The Dragons would not look back from there, outscoring the Lumberjacks 18-6 throughout the remainder of the set. MSUM would tally four more service aces in the frame from Ramsay, Thompson, Riess and another from Olesch. Five different Dragons earned kills in the set as MSUM dominated, 25-11.
With a clean sweep on their minds, MSUM would build a 6-3 advantage in the third set behind kills from Erickson, Ramsay and
Annalise Wilson. Thompson and Erickson would team up for a massive block assist in the same flurry. While Cal Poly Humboldt would eventually even the count at eight points, a service ace from Thompson would help MSUM respond. The Dragons would extend their lead to five points (19-14) after Thompson and
Amanda Lisi each dropped in service aces.
MSUM's lead would grow as large as seven points (21-14) later in the frame thanks to another kill from Riess. However, the Lumberjacks would stave off MSUM for a little while longer, pulling the score to within two points behind a 5-0 run. Mandell would snap that run with a monster kill to put MSUM up 22-19. Erickson would add in a kill on a free ball during the ensuing rally before a Lumberjack error brought the Dragons to set point. A kill from the freshman Riess would put the finishing touches on a dominating performance from MSUM. The Dragons collected 11 service aces in the victory.
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Mavericks 3, Dragons 0
Set Scores: 25-15, 25-16, 25-23
Colorado Mesa would quickly show why they are nationally ranked, opening up the first set on a 10-3 run before a Thompson kill stopped the bleeding. The Mavericks would bolster that lead later in the set, working towards a 17-7 advantage. Colorado Mesa's lead would remain at ten points (21-11) thanks to 17 kills in the set. The Dragons would get the score as close as nine points, but the Mavericks had full command of the frame, winning 25-15. MSUM hit for just a .111 percentage while Colorado Mesa bolstered a .353 clip.
MSUM would come into the second set with a higher sense of urgency, building a 6-3 lead behind a pair of kills from Erickson and another from Riess. However, Colorado Mesa would respond with a 7-1 run to regain the lead, 10-7. While a kill from Ramsay would bring the Dragons to within two, the Mavericks would fire off another 7-1 run thereafter to lead 17-9. Eventually, Colorado Mesa would extend its lead to 10 points late in the set and would eventually capture the frame by a 25-16 score. The Mavericks hit for another high mark in the set with a .387 clip to MSUM's .172 percentage.
The Dragons would finally find some rhythm in the third set as Riess tallied four kills in MSUM's first nine points, creating a 9-5 lead. MSUM would keep that lead after a kill from
Jocelin Feutz (11-9). The Dragon lead would extend as far as six points (17-11) after kills from Erickson and Ramsay. Another kill from Riess would make the score 22-17. However, Colorado Mesa would completely bounce back, closing the frame on a 7-1 run to steal the set, 25-23.
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Up Next
MSUM (4-3) completes play at the Maverick Fall Classic with a noon match against Adams State University.
