 |
 Seniors Marcie Hill, Kim Gear, and Mayssa Bazzi were recognized prior to the home finale Saturday. |
Nov. 1, 2008
DETROIT - The Wayne State University volleyball team (14-11, 7-7 GLIAC) clinched its first berth in the GLIAC Tournament since 2005 with a 3-0 win over Ashland University (13-13, 5-10 GLIAC) on Saturday afternoon at the Matthaei.
The Warriors, who celebrated Senior Day as part of their regular season home finale, won its second match of the weekend in straight sets (25-17, 25-11, 27-25) to ensure they will finish no lower than third in the GLIAC South Division.
Sarha Gosselin (Harrison Twp., Mich./Warren Lincoln) had one of her most productive matches of the season with 18 kills, a .485 hitting percentage, eight digs, four blocks, and two service aces.
Kim Gear (Benton Harbor, Mich./Watervliet) finished with seven kills, a .538 attack percentage, and four blocks in an error-free performance. Lauren Mallast (Chesterfield, Mich./Anchor Bay) also had seven kills in addition to a team-high eight blocks.
The Warriors never trailed in the first set, jumping out to an 8-3 lead on their way to a 25-17 triumph. They led wire-to-wire in the second, upending the Eagles by 14 points to take a 2-0 lead.
The third set was back and forth, with Wayne State taking a 4-1 lead until a five point run made it 6-4 in favor of Ashland. The Warriors battled back to take a 13-9 advantage, and the Eagles responded with a 10-4 run to force a WSU timeout.
Each team used its two timeouts over the next nine points. The Warriors went down 25-24 and, faced with the possibility of a fourth set, grabbed the next three points to sweep the match.
Katy Westenberg (Milford, Mich.) finished with 34 assists, six digs and three blocks. Mayssa Bazzi (Dearborn, Mich.) led WSU defensively with 15 digs, and Candis Jenich (Warren, Mich./Cousino) chipped in five kills.
Wayne State will close out the regular season on the road next weekend, playing at Findlay on Friday at 7:00 p.m. and Hillsdale on Saturday at 1:00 p.m. The GLIAC Tournament quarterfinal will be Wednesday, Nov. 12, with the opponent and site to be determined.
NOTES
The 11 points allowed in the second set marks the lowest total WSU has surrendered in a 25-point set this season ... the Warriors snapped an 11-match losing streak against the Eagles ... WSU's last win over Ashland prior to Saturday was Oct. 4, 2003 in Detroit ... the team acknowledged its three seniors - Bazzi, Gear, and Marcie Hill (Dearborn, Mich.) - prior to the start of the match ... this is Wayne State's second berth in the conference touranament since 1999.
