BIG RAPIDS, Mich. – The Saginaw Valley State University volleyball team's five-match winning streak came to an end Friday evening as the Cardinals fell in straight sets to No. 1 Ferris State inside Bulldog Arena.
The Cardinals (12-4, 5-2 GLIAC) fell 25-22, 25-15, and 25-20 to the undefeated Bulldogs (15-0, 7-0 GLIAC).
Saginaw Valley battled Ferris State throughout a back-and-forth opening set that featured 15 ties and six lead changes. SVSU broke a 9-9 tie with three consecutive points, including a kill from Jackie Scheiber (Wyandotte, Mich., Riverview Community HS), to take a 12-9 advantage. The Bulldogs responded and eventually moved ahead 14-13 before the Cardinals regained an 18-16 lead behind a block from Ava Decker (Elkhart, Ind., Elkhart HS) and Taylor Smith (Pewamo, Mich., Pewamo-Westphalia Community Schools), followed by a Smith service ace.
Ferris State answered with three straight points to move ahead 19-18. The Cardinals remained within one at 22-21 following a Scheiber kill, but the Bulldogs scored three of the final four points to take the opener 25-22.
The teams traded points early in the second set before Ferris State began to create separation. SVSU pulled within 8-7 following consecutive kills from Scheiber and Chloe Vanwinkle (Clio, Mich., Clio High School), but the Bulldogs responded with four straight points for a 12-8 lead. Ferris State later used another run to extend its advantage to 16-9 and went on to take the set 25-15.
Ferris State opened the third set with a 6-0 run after the teams were tied at 2-2. The Cardinals continued to battle and cut the deficit to 14-10 following a Rachel Townsend (Oxford, Mich., Oxford HS) service ace. SVSU later put together three consecutive points to pull within 18-15, with Vanwinkle and Smith contributing during the run.
The Cardinals made one final push, cutting the deficit to 22-19 behind kills from Townsend and Decker. Ferris State answered with two straight points before closing out the match, 25-20.
Vanwinkle led Saginaw Valley with nine kills while hitting .250 and added nine digs. Scheiber finished with seven kills, while Townsend recorded six kills, a match-high 17 digs, a service ace, and a solo block. Smith dished out 23 assists to go with five digs and two block assists, while Kendall White (DeWitt, Mich., St. John's HS) added 12 digs.
SVSU finished with 30 kills and hit .165 for the match, including a .313 clip in the third set. Ferris State hit .302 with 41 kills and held an 8-3 advantage in service aces.
Up Next: Cardinal volleyball comes home tomorrow, Saturday, October 3, for a homecoming match against Davenport. First serve is set for 5 PM at Hamilton Gymnasium.
