Huskies Defeat Ashland in 3-0 Sweep Friday
| Final | 1 | 2 | 3 | T | |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
|
Ashland (10-6) | 15 | 23 | 25 | 0 |
|
Michigan Tech (10-6) | 25 | 25 | 27 | 3 |
HOUGHTON, Mich. - The Michigan Tech Huskies swept the Ashland Eagles in the SDC Friday to advance to a 5-3 record in the Great Lakes Intercollegiate Athletic Conference. The Huskies pulled away for a 25-15 win in set one and persevered in set two 25-23 and three 25-27. Olivia Ghormley and Emilia Widen scored the match point with a big block for the Huskies' win while MacAulay Petersen powered the offense with 16 kills.
The Huskies were nearly unstoppable in set one by hitting at a .351 attack percentage while tallying 17 kills with just four errors. Tech would then capitalize in the second set recording 22 more kills and 45 digs as a team. The third set was a thriller, tied at 16's, a tip from Laura DeMarchi, edged the Huskies forward 17-16. The Eagles fought hard, but the Huskies prevailed 27-25 with a high of 58 kills overall.
"I'm really happy with the win," said Tech Head Coach Matt Jennings. "The 3-0 sweep was what we were shooting for and I thought we came out particularly strong in that first set. Our offense really did their job today, in all three sets. Kind of like last weekend against Wayne where we pushed it close in two sets. For us to hold on for wins in the second and third sets by two points, that's a big thing. For us to do that two games in a row now is a good sign, and shows the direction we are heading in as a team, our maturity and working to finish games."
Laura DeMarchi set up the offense for the Huskies recording 51 assists while adding 10 digs and two kills.
The Huskies had four players reach double-figures in kills on the match. MacAulay Petersen led with 16 kills and had only five errors followed by Mariah Sherman with 14 with only two errors and added a pair of blocks. Stephanie Dietrich chipped in 11 and added two blocks, while Olivia Ghormley tacked on 10 kills in the winning effort. Middle-blocker, Emilia Widen stepped up to the net, starting in her first career match, and chipped in four kills and six digs.
"Not only did Emilia do her job and do it well in her first career start, but the reality is it's been a long time since we've started anyone but Lauren and Stephanie," Jennings added. "Stephanie, our middle in there, did a great job tonight and had a great night. She was up fast and scored. Our pinhitters Mac, Mariah, and Liv all stepped up and had a nice game for us."
Elle Heinonen had a high of 22 digs on the match, followed by freshmen Anna Jonynas and Megan Utlak; both contributing double-digit digs. Jonynas picked up 13 and Utlak had 11 digs.
The Huskies edged past the Eagles in the GLIAC standings with the victory. Tech, Ashland, and Tiffin were all tied for fifth place. Tech is now 5-3 in the conference and riding a two match winning streak coming off of Wayne State last Saturday.
"Going forward, we dropped a couple that I think we would like back and I think it's a goal of ours to not drop back-to-back matches anymore," said Jennings.
The Black and Gold are back in the SDC gym tomorrow as they defend their home court against the Tiffin Dragons, Saturday Oct. 7. First serve is set for 4 p.m.
