CROOKSTON, Minn.- The University of Minnesota Crookston volleyball team fell 3-0 (25-7, 25-10, 25-22) to No. 4 Southwest Minnesota State University at Lysaker Gymnasium Fri., Oct. 16. The Mustangs played phenomenal volleyball in the first two sets, but UMC tested the Mustangs in set three, falling just 25-22 to last year's NCAA Division II Runner-Up. The Golden Eagles fall to 7-11 (3-7 NSIC), while Southwest Minnesota State improved to 15-3 (8-2 NSIC) with Friday's victory.

Minnesota Crookston was led by Maggie Perrel (R-So., RS, New Germany, Minn.), who had six kills on the night. Stephanie Pearson (Sr., OH, Frankfort, Ill.) added four kills, while Kassi Green (R-So., OH, Anoka, Minn.) chipped in four. Erin Schwarz (Jr., MH, Eden Prairie, Minn.) finished with three kills and hit .250 for the match.

The Golden Eagles were held by a strong SMSU defense as they had 20 kills and 20 errors and hit .000 on the match. Sierra Trost (Jr., S, Ham Lake, Minn.) had 17 assists on the night.

Defensively, Casey Cashman (Jr., DS/Lib., Ashland, Wis.) added nine digs, while Trost chipped in seven. Kelci Green (R-So., MH, Anoka, Minn.) led the block with one solo block and three block assists.

Southwest Minnesota State hit .329 on the match with 36 kills and 10 errors. The Mustangs hit .706 with 13 kills and just one error in a dominant first set. In set two, SMSU hit .250 and had nine kills and three errors.

The Mustangs were led by 2014 AVCA All-American Abbey Thissen, who had 11 kills and hit .526 for the match from the right-side. Taylor Reiss filled in for injured Eisha Oden, as she had 10 kills and hit .389 on the match.

The offense was paced by Megan Larson, who would finish with 27 assists.

Defensively, Sarah Parker was dominant on the block with three solo blocks and three block assists. Libero Whitney Burmeister led the way with 15 digs, while Emilee Gutzmer finished with nine digs and Larson had eight.

The Golden Eagles will face University of Sioux Falls Sat., Oct. 17 at 4 p.m. The Cougars just picked up their first win in the NSIC with a 3-0 win over Bemidji State University.

For more information, visit the Golden Eagle Athletics website at www.goldeneaglesports.com.

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The University of Minnesota Crookston is a NCAA Division II university located in the Red River Valley of Northwest Minnesota. UMC sponsors 11 intercollegiate athletic teams with membership in the Northern Sun Intercollegiate conference (NSIC) and the Intercollegiate Horse Show Association (IHSA). The NSIC is a 16-team conference with schools situated in Minnesota, Iowa, North Dakota, South Dakota and Nebraska.