Indiana Cougars fall short in 5 sets to the Michigan Cougars
| Final | 1 | 2 | 3 | 4 | 5 | T | |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
|
Spring Arbor (MI) (11-8, 5-3) | 25 | 23 | 20 | 25 | 15 | 3 |
|
Saint Francis (Ind.) (5-13, 1-7) | 22 | 25 | 25 | 12 | 10 | 2 |
FORT WAYNE, Ind. – USF played host to the Spring Arbor University (Mich.) Cougars Wednesday night in Hutzell Athletic Center, falling short of a 5 set victory. Saint Francis lost the first set 25-22, but rallied back to tie things up at 1 set a piece in the second with a 25-23 victory.
Going into the third set, USF turned to their bench for the go ahead set bringing in Eliza Madden to set, Peyton Pries to serve, and Kiana Gomez-Espino & Kendel Frey for a new look at the net. Saint Francis used their depth to their advantage taking the go-ahead set, but falling in the fourth set to SAU 25-12. With one 15-point set to go, SAU capitalized on some miscommunication errors and some "free points" from service errors to take the 15-10 victory in the last set to take the match from USF.
This is the first five-set match the Cougars have encountered in Crossroads League Play & the best team performance yet. Key contributors to the valiant effort came from Paige Fortkamp who had 11 assists & 12 kills to contribute to the Cougar prowess at the net. Addison Shafer also had 12 kills for the match and sprinkled in one stellar dig in her 5 sets played. Alexis Gregory led the way with digs in the back court giving the Cougs plenty of rally opportunities. Hannah Sweeney also had 13 digs in the back court assisting the Cougar rally. Last, but not least, Jo Delsing led the way for USF in assists tallying 29, 1 service ace, & 2 digs.
As a team, USF recorded 33 kills, 47 assists, 8 service aces, 58 digs, & 9 blocks within 5 exciting sets. The Cougars are now 5-13 overall & 1-7 in Crossroads League play. Saint Francis will return back to Hutzell this Saturday (9|30) to play host to the Huntington University Foresters for a 4pm first serve.
Cougar fans stay updated with all events and recaps with USF Athletics by visiting saintfranciscougars.com or by downloading the Saint Francis Cougars app.
-USF Athletics-
