Kenosha, Wis – The No. 19-ranked Michigan Tech volleyball team started two matches Friday at the Hampton Invitational at Parkside, but finished just one. Later that afternoon, the Huskies played Upper Iowa, but the game was canceled and was a no-contest at DeSimone Arena after extreme heat. Tech lost to McKendree 3-1 on the night.
“It just wasn’t our day today,” Tech coach Matt Jennings said. “We were slow in our previous match, in the draw and we were poor tonight. Thanks to a good McKendree team they beat us in almost every part of the game.”
The Huskies suffered their first loss by scores of 27-25, 20-25, 23-25, and 18-25. There were 13 ties and seven lead changes in the first set. Meg Rabe had a kill to tie it at 25 before back-to-back offensive errors by the Bearcats put Tech in front. Jillian Kuizenga and Lindy Oujiri led the Huskies with four kills each in the opening set.
McKendree (4-2) led from start to finish in the second set, outscoring the Huskies .235 to .071. Rabe had four kills and nine digs in the second for the Black and Gold.
The Bearcats scored four of the final five points in the third to take a 2-1 lead. The set had 15 turnovers and eight lead changes. Brock Dzwick led the Huskies with five kills and six digs.
Tech held an early three-point lead in the fourth, but the Bearcats went on 8-0 and 7-1 runs to take command. Karissa Beyer recorded six digs in the fourth.
Kuizenga led the Huskies with 12 kills in the match, while Rabe finished with 11 kills and eight digs. Lina Espejo-Ramirez led the offense with a career-high 37 assists and 13 steals. Beyer finished with a team-high 16 digs.
In the afternoon game, Upper Iowa led 2-1 before a three-game sweep.
Tech wraps up the tournament Saturday against Springfield, Illinois at 10 a.m. and Crookston, Minnesota at 6 p.m.
