KENOSHA, Wis. – The University of Minnesota Crookston earned a split Friday with a victory over the University of Illinois Springfield 3-1 after falling to McKendree University 3-0 in the early session. The win is the first for Interim Head Coach Nick Meseck. It also marks the first victory since a September 14, 2021 win over Minot State University.

The Golden Eagles improved to 1-5 with Friday's victory over the Prairie Stars. McKendree is 4-2 on the season, while Illinois Springfield is 3-3.

Match One
The Golden Eagles fell 3-0 (25-17, 25-21, 25-17) to McKendree University. Minnesota Crookston hung tight throughout the three sets Friday morning but were unable to come away with a victory.

Minnesota Crookston hit .117 for the match, with 27 kills and 16 errors on 94 total attempts. The Golden Eagles were guided by nine kills and 11 digs from Bailey Schaefer (So., OH, Evansville, Minn.). Schaefer hit .182 for the match. Mara Weisensel (Jr., MH, New Ulm, Minn.) added eight kills and hit .222 from her middle hitter position. Audrey Cariveau (Fr., OH, Kevil, Ky.) finished with six kills. At setter, Natalie Koke (R-Sr., S, Caledonia, Wis.) amassed 25 assists.

Defensively, Schaefer led the squad with 11 digs while Layne Whaley (So., Lib., Ashland, Wis.) had 10 digs. Grace Arndorfer (So., MH, Lino Lakes, Minn.) led the block with two block assists.
The Golden Eagles struggled in the first set hitting -.138, but they rebounded to hit .257 in set two, and .200 in set three. McKendree hit .310 for the match.

The Bearcats looked to Claire Diercks with 11 kills. Amber Williams guided the offense with 38 helpers, while Maddie Misner had 12 digs.

The Golden Eagles closed to within 11-9 in the first stanza after a block from Weisensel, but the Bearcats utilized a 5-1 run to help cement the 25-17 set win. In set two, UMN Crookston had a four-point rally ending with a block from Cariveau and Arndorfer to pull within 21-20. However, McKendree ended the set on a 4-1 run to win the frame 25-21. In the final stanza, UMN Crookston closed within 23-17 after a kill from Weisensel but the Bearcats secured the final two points to win 25-17.

Match Two
Minnesota Crookston defeated Illinois Springfield 3-1 (26-24, 16-25, 25-17, 25-23) for their first win of the season. The Golden Eagles hit .143 for the match and held the Prairie Stars to a .116 hitting percentage.

The Golden Eagles had three players reach double-figure kills for the match, paced by Schaefer with 13 kills. Cariveau finished with 12 kills, while Weisensel had a great match hitting .391 with 10 kills and just one error. The offense was paced by Koke at setter. She finished with 44 assists, averaging 11.0 assists per set. The 44 assists set a career high for the redshirt senior setter.

Defensively, Whaley tallied 24 digs for an average of 6.0 digs per set. Schaefer added 15 digs. On the block, Weisensel paced the squad with six block assists. The team had 18 overall blocks. Arndorfer chipped in two solo blocks and three block assists.

Illinois Springfield was guided by 15 kills from Angela Denney. Regan Trueblood led the team with 21 assists. Defensively, the Prairie Stars looked to Amanda McConnell with 16 digs.

The Golden Eagles hit .205 in the first set. Minnesota Crookston raced out to a 4-0 lead following a Koke service ace. Illinois Springfield tied the match 13-13 following an attack error. UMN Crookston then rattled off four-straight points to get out to a 17-13 advantage. The Prairie Stars again evened the slate late in the set 24-24 after a block from Ericka Snopko and Zanea Spencer. Minnesota Crookston came through with a kill from Koke and a service ace from Cariveau to take the frame 26-24.

The Golden Eagles hit .212 in the second set but lost five of the final six points in the set to fall 25-16.

They rebounded in the third set. UMN Crookston and Illinois Springfield kept the score close early. The Prairie Stars led the set 7-5 after a Sledge service ace. Minnesota Crookston then caught fire as they took 11 of the next 12 points propelled by two kills apiece from Schaefer and Weisensel to take the 16-8 lead. Illinois Springfield closed the set to 19-15 but the Golden Eagles came through with the set win 25-17 after a block from Weisensel and Charlee Krieg (Jr., RS, Cavalier, N.D.).

The Golden Eagles jumped out to a 4-0 advantage in the fourth set. The Prairie Stars countered and knotted the set up 9-9 with a block from Snopko. UMN Crookston countered by taking seven of the next eight points after an Arndorfer kill made it 16-10. Illinois Springfield made a late charge to pull within 22-20. However, UMN Crookston came through in the end by taking five of the last six points to take the set 25-23 and the match 3-1.

The Golden Eagles continue play at the Hampton Inn Invitational in Kenosha, Wis. Saturday, September 3. They will take on the University of Wisconsin-Parkside at 1 p.m. and No. 23 Michigan Technological University at 5 p.m.