Great Lakes Wire

The Northern Michigan volleyball team faced a tough match against Wayne State, losing in straight sets with scores of 16-25, 23-25, and 23-25. The match took place on Saturday evening in Detroit.

Wayne State began the first set strong, securing the initial four points and maintaining control to win 25-16. Their performance was marked by a .417 hitting percentage and an 18-9 advantage in kills.

In the second set, Northern Michigan initially led 4-1 and extended their lead to as much as seven points at 17-10. However, Wayne State rallied from a five-point deficit at 21-16 to tie the score. The teams exchanged points until Wayne State scored three consecutive points to claim the set with a narrow 25-23 victory. Despite Northern Michigan's .355 hitting percentage and contributions from seven players totaling 14 kills, they could not overcome Wayne State's three service aces.

The third set mirrored the start of the first with Wayne State again taking a quick 4-0 lead. Northern Michigan managed to even the score at 6-6 but fell behind once more as Wayne State led by six points at 17-11. A concerted effort from Rayne Thompson, Jacqueline Smith, and Olivia Webber brought Northern Michigan close at 24-23 before Kayla Giroux of Wayne State delivered her game-high 16th kill to secure another 25-23 win for her team.

Jacqueline Smith led Northern Michigan with twelve kills. Allie Barlow contributed thirty-three assists while Caylie Barlage added nine digs defensively. Overall, Northern Michigan hit .263 compared to Wayne State's .378—the latter being one of the best performances against them this season.

This defeat brings Northern Michigan's record to thirteen wins and seven losses overall with a conference record of seven wins and three losses. Meanwhile, Wayne State now holds ten wins and ten losses overall with an identical conference record of seven wins and three losses.

Looking ahead, Northern Michigan is preparing for a busy week featuring three matches. They will face off against Michigan Tech on Wednesday before hosting Purdue Northwest and Parkside for their final home matches of the regular season.