Huskies fall in five in GLIAC Championship
| Final | 1 | 2 | 3 | 4 | 5 | T | |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
|
Ferris State (25-4) | 21 | 25 | 15 | 25 | 16 | 3 |
|
Michigan Tech (24-6) | 25 | 21 | 25 | 19 | 14 | 2 |
HOUGHTON, Mich. – Ferris State defeated No. 20 Michigan Tech 3-2 Sunday (Nov. 21) in the GLIAC Championship Match at the SDC Gym. The Huskies won the first and third sets 25-21 and 25-15 before the Bulldogs won 25-21 in the second 25-19 in the fourth, and 16-14 in the fifth.
"This one stings because we fell short, but we are still alive," Tech coach Matt Jennings said. "We're going to play in the NCAA. It's just a matter of where. This team fought as hard as I've ever seen. If you were here today you were witness to a dandy. It's unfortunate we didn't have our full team but that's even more of a testament to the group we did have today. I couldn't be more proud."
Michigan Tech is 24-6 overall and will wait for the announcement of the NCAA bracket which will take place Monday at 7:30 p.m. The Bulldogs earned the GLIAC's automatic bid, but Tech was the top-ranked team in the Midwest Rankings for the final three weeks.
The Huskies led for all but one volley in the first set and closed on an 8-4 run to take the lead. Anna Jonynas had four kills in the first while Laura De Marchi and Megan Utlak dug up six balls each.
Ferris built a 13-5 lead in the second set. The Huskies battled back to tie it at 20 before the Bulldogs closed the frame on a 5-1 run to tie the match.
The Huskies were dominant in the third, taking a 6-0 lead and an 11-2 advantage. Morgan Radtke had six kills in the third, including Tech's final two points. Jonynas had four kills and six digs and Utlak racked up seven digs.
The Bulldogs built a 22-12 lead in the fourth. Though the Huskies didn't win in the fourth, they used a 6-2 run late to carry momentum into the fifth. Lindy Oujiri had four kills in the fourth.
Ferris went on a 4-0 run in the fifth to take an 8-4 lead. The Huskies then turned it on with a 5-1 run of their own to make it a one-point match at 11-10 and eventually tie it at 12. The teams traded points before a kill by Katie O'Connell gave FSU a setpoint lead. Jonynas answered with a kill for the Huskies. The match ended with a serving error and a kill by Kira Merkle.
The Huskies tallied 109 digs in the match with Megan Utlak, totaling 32 digs. Laura De Marchi bested yesterday's career-high with 23 digs while setting the offense with 53 assists. Anna Jonynas had 22 digs and 17 kills. Lina Espejo-Ramirez added 16 digs and Grace Novotny finished with 14 digs. Lindy Oujiri finished with 14 kills and Morgan Radtke added 13 kills.
