The Huskies looked to rebound after losing two straight. They did just that as they didn’t lose a single set this past weekend. They swept both the Davenport Panthers and the Purdue Northwest Pride by scores of 3-0.
On Friday, Oct. 20, the first set started out with the Huskies and Panthers battling back and forth, at one point tied 6-6. However, a kill by Freshman Olivia Ghormley started the charge for the Huskies, as they would go up 18-13 on a service ace by Freshman Anna Jonyas. The Huskies would charge on from there winning the first set 25-17 on two straight attack errors on the Panthers.
The second set started a lot like the first, as the Huskies and Panthers traded point for point. The Huskies tied it up at seven a piece on a kill by Sophomore MacAulay Petersen, which was the first of seven straight points for the Huskies. The Huskies would march on to win the second set 25-10 on a service ace by Senior Elle Heinonen.
The third set saw the Huskies take a 4-0 lead, before the Panthers battled back to make it 9-8 MTU after a kill. The Huskies responded to the kill with another seven-point run to make it 16-8 MTU. The Huskies marched on to victory winning the third set 25-11.
The Huskies were led in kills by Petersen with 12, while Junior Mariah Sherman had 11. The Huskies had five service aces in the match, and Senior Stephanie Dietrich had the only block for the Huskies. Heinonen and Freshman Laura DeMarchi led the Huskies with 11 digs each.
On Saturday, Oct. 21, the Huskies and Pride went back and forth to start the first set. An attack error on the Pride tied the game up for the Huskies at 11 apiece, which prompted the start of an 12-2 point run for the Huskies who went up 22-13. The Huskies ran away with the first set 25-19 on a kill by Dietrich.
The Huskies saw the Pride tie it up at 11 in the second set after a service ace. A service ace for the Huskies by Senior Halie Hart saw Tech go up 17-12, which forced Purdue Northwest to call a timeout. The Huskies rolled on after the timeout to win the second set by a score of 25-19 on a service error.
Tech gained the lead early in the third set, going up 9-2, and never looked back from there, as they rolled on to easily win the set 25-11 on a service ace by Heinonen.
Ghormley led the Huskies with 15 kills while Sherman was right behind her with 13 on the day. Three different Huskies had service aces, with Heinonen leading the Huskies with 25 digs. Petersen and Senior Lauren Emmert each had a block in the match.
“It was a really nice weekend for us,” said Tech head coach Matt Jennings. “We had two home GLIAC wins which is always something you’re shooting for when you go into a weekend. To win both 3-0 pretty decisively, and I think we kept them under 20 in all six sets, that’s something we should be proud of.”
The Huskies will be on the road next weekend as they travel to the Saginaw Valley State Cardinals (5-17, 3-8 GLIAC) and U.P. foe Lake Superior State Lakers (5-17, 1-10 GLIAC). Both the Cardinals and Lakers were swept this past weekend by Wayne State and Grand Valley.
