DETROIT, Mich. — Wayne State defeated Davenport (11-12, 7-5 GLIAC) in four sets at the Matthaei Center on Saturday, with scores of 25-21, 23-25, 25-18, 25-16. Wayne State's strong offensive performance included 61 kills, outpacing Davenport's 44.
Wayne State eased out to a 6-3 lead in the opening set only to see the Panthers score three straight points to even the set at 6. The set remained within a few points with a couple of ties at 12, 13, and 15 apiece. The Warriors went ahead 20-18 as Paige Giehtbrock had the kill to reach the 20th point. WSU took a lead at 21-19 and rattled off three straight points to go up 24-19. Lauren Essenpreis had the kill to close out the 25-21 first set win for the Warriors.
Davenport seized momentum early in the second set, initiating a strong 6-1 run with
Kaitlin Jordan securing multiple kills, assisted by
Madison Berry.
Abby Alan contributed with consecutive service aces, extending the lead to 10-2. Wayne State played uphill for the second set with the Panthers having a comfortable lead. The Warriors made things interesting tying up the set at 22, but Davenport nailed down the last three points of the set for a 25-22 edge. Giehtbrock's attack error on the final point evened the match at one set each.
Davenport started the third set with a quick kill
Kaitlin Jordan, before the Warriors scored three straight points. Despite early exchanges, the Warriors gained momentum with a series of successful plays, pulling ahead to an 11-5 lead. Davenport responded with kills from
Karley Pretzer and Alan, closing the gap slightly. However, Wayne State sustained their advantage with effective attacks, leading 15-9. Davenport fought back with a brief run, highlighted by Jordan's second kill of the set, narrowing the score to 18-13.
As the set progressed, Wayne State maintained their lead despite Davenport's efforts to reduce the margin with points from
Livi Overbeek and Pretzer. The home team capitalized on Davenport's service errors to secure a 25-18 finish, concluding the set with a victory.
Davenport began the fourth set with a strong defensive effort, but Wayne State quickly established an early lead with a series of kills from Giehtbrock, building a 3-0 advantage. Pretzer and Alan responded with kills to trim the deficit to 3-2, but Wayne regained momentum with a series of successful offensive plays to extend their lead to 7-3. The Panthers could not string plays together and the Warriors built a double-digit lead at 16-6.
Hayley Carr's service ace later in the set made it 22-15, but the Warriors closed out the match on a Kayla Giroux kill at 25-16.
Berry facilitated the offense effectively, recording 32 assists. Carr contributed defensively with 16 digs. Jordan added seven kills and was active at the net with three total blocks.
Julia Frederick excelled from the service line, delivering three aces while collecting 12 digs. The road matches continue next Friday, Nov. 7 at Michigan Tech with a 5 PM start.
