MOORHEAD, Minn. – The University of Minnesota Crookston volleyball team held their own Fri., Sept. 14 as they battled with Highway 75 rival Minnesota State University Moorhead, but they ultimately fell short 3-1 (25-16, 20-25, 25-23, 25-18).

The Golden Eagles were able to take the second set after rebounding from a loss in set one. Minnesota Crookston also held a 22-21 lead late in the third set before succumbing to the Dragons 25-23. Despite the loss, the Golden Eagles still displayed signs of improved play from the earlier in the week.

Minnesota Crookston had 34 kills on the match, as they finished the day hitting .064. The Dragons notched 54 kills and hit .153. The Golden Eagles continue to display great defense on the season as they picked up 84 digs for an average of 21 digs per set. 

Key Players
Minnesota Crookston
Deaira Gresham, 8 kills, -.024 hitting pct., 16 digs
Porsha Porath, 7 kills, .094 hitting pct., 15 digs
Kaitlin Sikkink, 7 kills, .154 hitting pct., 4 blocks
Sydney Kruisselbrink, 29 assists, 9 digs
Ali Schueler, 24 digs

MSU Moorhead
Amanda Carlson, 19 kills, .218 hitting pct., 20 digs
Kaylyn Jenkins, 11 kills
Kylie Kanwischer, 10 kills
Lauren Kiewiet, 28 assists
Katelyn Selensky, 17 assists

First Set
The Dragons held an early 5-2 advantage in the first set following a kill from Kylie Kanwischer. Minnesota Crookston responded as they cut the deficit to 5-4 following a service ace from Deaira Gresham (So., OH, Maplewood, Minn.). MSU Moorhead countered with a 6-1 run to take the 11-5 lead guided by two kills from Amanda Carlson. Minnesota Crookston did not back down as they cut the lead to 15-12 with a kill from Kaitlin Sikkink (R-Jr., MH, St. Charles, Minn.). However, the Dragons controlled the rest of the match as they outscored Minnesota Crookston 10-4 the rest of the way to take the 25-16 set victory.

Second Set
Minnesota Crookston responded with a strong second set. MSU Moohead held the early advantage 4-2 after a Carlson kill. The Golden Eagles responded with a 4-0 run to take the lead 6-4 off strong serving from Ali Schueler (R-Jr., Lib., Howards Grove, Wis.). The Dragons were able to overtake the lead 8-6 as Katelyn Selensky held a strong serve. That is when Minnesota Crookston responded with some urgency, using a 6-2 run to move into a 12-10 advantage. The Dragons would lead once more at 16-14 after a bad set, but the Golden Eagles were able to close out the second frame on a 9-4 run propelled by two service aces from Schueler and two kills from Callie Schapekahm (Sr., MH, Eagan, Minn.). Minnesota Crookston won by a score of 25-20.

Third Set
MSU Moorhead jumped out to a 6-1 advantage in set three as Kaylyn Jenkins was strong on her serve. The Dragons continued to lead 18-14 after a bad set. Minnesota Crookston came through in a big spot as they used an 8-4 run to take the 22-21 lead guided by two kills apiece from Porsha Porath and Sydney Kruisselbrink (So., S, Rochester, Minn.). The Dragons took the next two points to flip the score to 23-22 on a Minnesota Crookston attack error. The Golden Eagles evened the tally at 23-23 following a Taylor Thorson service error. However, MSU Moorhead took the final two points of the set to win 25-23 and take a 2-1 advantage in the match.

Fourth Set
The Dragons got out to an early 15-7 lead in the fourth set after kills from Kaylyn Jenkins and Lexi Gilbertson. Minnesota Crookston was able to close the lead to 15-10 with a kill from Melissa Rodriguez (Jr., MH, Sarchi, Costa Rica) and service ace from Kruisselbrink. However, MSU Moorhead won the next three points to go up 18-10 following back-to-back kills from Carlson. The Golden Eagles came within 20-15 propelled by kills from Rodriguez and Porath. The Dragons held off Minnesota Crookston as they took the stanza 25-18 and the match 3-1.