Wildcats honor five seniors
MARQUETTE, Mich. — The NMU volleyball team fell 3-2 to the Wayne State Warriors on Saturday night.
Prior to serve, the Wildcats (11-14, 7-7 GLIAC) honored seniors Lauren Cardwell, Kaysie Bakke, Helen Beiring, KC Fortune, Liesl Haugen, Sydney Bartels, and Allie Barlow, commemorating their success on the final regular-season home match of the campaign.
The Warriors (13-12, 6-8 GLIAC) spoiled the Wildcats’ senior night, completing a comeback after the ‘Cats took a 2-1 lead.
Kaylie McIntosh led the Green and Gold attack with 17 kills, followed by senior Fortune with 14, and Laynie Russell with nine. Barlow notched three kills to go with her 39 assists and two aces; Fortune, Russell, and Larsen Bonnstetter all notched a pair of blocks, and Cardwell and Fortune added 10 digs.
The teams came out to an 8-8 start before the Warriors opened a 7-2 run. An even back-and-forth finish from there saw the Warriors take set one.
An 11-5 lead for the Wildcats, including a 5-1 run in the final six points of that set and three kills from Russell, forced a Wayne State timeout. After a short run from the Warriors, a big dig from Cardwell sets up Fortune kills, and the Wildcats would claim set two.
The ‘Cats had spark to the third, jumping out to a 14-6 lead before blocks from O’Keefe and Fortune put the set all but out of reach. A pair of kills from Barlow, an ace from Fortune, and a Russell kill gave the ‘Cats a 2-1 lead.
Despite six kills from McIntosh in the fourth, the Warriors forced a fifth thanks to a 10-1 run in the middle of the set, and the teams took to the fifth.
The Warriors jumped to an early lead, but big blocks from Russell sparked a comeback, and the ‘Cats took a one-point lead at 8-7. A 4-1 run from the Warriors out of a timeout, and the Warriors regained its lead. The ‘Cats tied the match at 11 before ultimately falling 12-15.
Up Next
The ‘Cats round out the regular season with two on the road, starting with a Tuesday, November 3 match at Michigan Tech, and the regular season finale at Parkside on Friday, November 6.
