SAULT STE. MARIE, Mich. - The Lake Superior State (LSSU) volleyball team (4-12, 3-5 GLIAC) completed the season sweep over the Wayne State Warriors (5-11, 2-6 GLIAC) after a straight-set victory in Bud Cooper Gymnasium on Friday.
The Lakers got off to a hot start in the opening set, using a 5-0 run that featured a kill from Mariana Velasque (Rio de Janeiro, Brazil) to take an 8-3 lead. Wayne State was able to bring it back to within two, but after both teams battled to a score of 17-16 in favor of the home team, LSSU closed out the set in force with an 8-1 run behind a kill and an ace from Emilee McDaniel (Manistique, Mich.) to take the set and the match by respective scores of 25-17 and 1-0.
The Lakers continued their momentum into the second set as seven more kills from Velasque propelled the Lakers to a massive 19-4 lead in dominant fashion. The Warriors were able to find some success in the latter half of the set, but it would prove to be too little too late as LSSU closed out the second set by a score of 25-17 and a 2-0 lead in the match.
Both teams battled early in the third set, but a pair of 4-1 Laker runs pushed LSSU to an 11-6 advantage after freshmen Morgan Deming (Boyne City, Mich.) and Rachel Steele (Eaton Rapids, Mich.) got involved on the attack. The Lakers continued to press ahead, but the Warriors would not give up, bringing the score back to within one at a score of 21-20. However, the Lakers would close out the third and final set with a 4-1 run after an emphatic kill from Velasque ended the match in straight sets.
Velasque led the way offensively with 14 kills to lead all players, and Emily Kalinowski (South Lyon, Mich.) would contribute 28 assists to bring her within five of fourth place in LSSU history in career assists, and she also added nine digs defensively. Meanwhile, Ally Lasley (Birch Run, Mich.) led all players with 15 digs, and Sydney Briney (St. Joseph, Mich.) added double-digit digs of her own with 13.
The Lakers return to action on Saturday, Oct. 7 when they host the Davenport Panthers with the first serve scheduled for 4 p.m.