Huskies advance to GLIAC Semis with sweep of Northwood
| Final | 1 | 2 | 3 | T | |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
|
Northwood (12-14) | 13 | 13 | 21 | 0 |
|
Michigan Tech (23-5) | 25 | 25 | 25 | 3 |
HOUGHTON, Mich. – No. 20 Michigan Tech advanced to the GLIAC Tournament Semifinals with a 3-0 sweep of Northwood Wednesday (Nov. 17) at the SDC Gym. The Huskies swept the Timberwolves for the third time this season 25-13, 25-13, and 25-21.
Tech will meet Davenport at 2:30 p.m. Saturday at the SDC Gym as the Panthers advanced with a 3-1 win at Grand Valley State. Ferris State and Wayne State will meet in the first semifinal at noon.
"We're definitely excited to be moving on to the semis, and we're excited that we get to host the championship," Tech coach Matt Jennings said. "This has been a goal for this group for a number of years, and it's a wonderful reward for all the work we've put in."
The Huskies never trailed in each of the first two sets, building a 14-6 lead in the first. Anna Jonynas opened the match with four straight kills and tallied seven in the first set alone. Tech hit .406 to begin the match and also got four kills from Janie Grindland, including the clinching point.
Megan Utlak served Tech to a 6-1 lead in the second. The lead ballooned to 15-3 and Morgan Radtke put the Huskies in the driver's seat with six kills in the second. Grindland again had the kill at the end to put the Huskies up 2-0 at the break.
Northwood (11-15) wouldn't go quietly in the third. Tech had to use a 6-1 run in the middle of the set to take a 16-13 lead. The Timberwolves regained the lead with the strong play of Al'Lesha Roberts. The tournament's No. 1 seed scored six of the final seven points to earn its 20th sweep of the season and 23rd overall win.
"Staying sharp from beginning to end is a primary goal for us every day," added Jennings. "We expected Northwood to come out with a push in the third and they did. I'm happy that we came out on top and that we're able to now get some rest before Saturday."
Jonynas finished with a match-high 14 kills. Grindland added 10 kills, Radtke nine, Jillian Kuizenga eight, and Lindy Oujiri six. Laura De Marchi set the attack with 37 assists. Megan Utlak (14 digs), Grace Novotny (13 digs), and Lina Espejo-Ramirez (10 digs) led the defense.
Grace Rekeweg led the visitors with nine digs. Macy Lintz had 28 assists and Megan Acs tallied 14 digs.
