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University of Wisconsin-Superior Athletics

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Wisconsin-Superior
Yellowjackets
Stephanie Bandelin
Jade Jensen

Volleyball

Spikers Go 1-1 to Open UMAC Preview

Stephanie Bandelin had 20 kills in Friday's win over Martin Luther.
Box Score

Friday night marked the first time this season the Yellowjacket volleyball team got a look at most of its new opponents in the Upper Midwest Athletic Conference, as the team competed in the UMAC Preview on the campus of the University of Northwestern. The Yellowjackets had two matches on opening day, the first against Twin Ports rival St. Scholastica, a team they have seen many times over the years, and the second against Martin Luther College, a team they don't know quite as well.

St. Scholastica 3, Yellowjackets 1

In the opener the Yellowjackets and Saints squared off on UNW's Court 2 and after two even sets things came unraveled for the Yellowjackets, and they dropped the match in four sets by scores of 20-25, 25-20, 13-20, and 17-20.

It was a match marred with errors for the Yellowjackets, as they had 31 attack errors to St. Scholastica's 13, and 10 service errors to the Saints' four in the match.

The first set started with the Yellowjackets jumping ahead early. They held that lead until the Saints came back and tied it 14-14. The teams traded points before the Yellowjackets went ahead 17-16, but that's where the fun ended, as the Saints picked that time to go on a run and pull away. St. Scholastica scored five consecutive points to take a 21-17 lead and kept the Yellowjackets at bay the rest of the way, winning the first set by five points.

The Yellowjackets turned the tables and took the second set to tie it. They took an early lead but St. Scholastica used an early run to erase a four-point deficit and pull ahead 7-6. The teams went back-and-forth, trading points with neither able to go up by more than a point until the Saints took a 19-17 lead. But a Saints service error followed by back-to-back kills from freshmen Bailey Romans (Duluth, Minn./East) and Molly Trapp (Esko, Minn./Esko) put the Yellowjackets in the lead. The Saints evened the game at 20-20 before the Yellowjackets closed it out, winning the final five points to even the match at 1-1.

In the third set things fell apart for the Yellowjackets. They produced only eight kills and had a negative attack percentage, allowing the Saints to build an insurmountable lead. Trailing by a point, the Yellowjackets watched the Saints win 12 of 14 points, stealing all the drama from the set as St. Scholastica won the set going away and move ahead 2-1 in the match.

The fourth set wasn't much better for the Yellowjackets, as they had just nine kills and an attack percentage of just under 12 percent, while the Saints attacked at a .448 clip. Still, it was a close game until the Saints pulled away late. In the early going it was the Yellowjackets taking charge, as they lead by as many as four points, 10-6. The teams were tied at 15-15 when the Saints hit the throttle, scoring 10 of the final 17 points in the set to close it out and defeat the Yellowjackets 3-1 in the match.

Romans paced the offense for the Yellowjackets, finishing with a match-high 12 kills. Ana Biscaia (Curitiba, Brazil/Colégio Positivo) added 10 kills, while Trapp and Stephanie Bandelin (Esko, Minn./Esko) each had nine. Emily VerWay (Inver Grove Heights, Minn./Simley) had 40 assists and also contributed 10 digs for the Yellowjackets. Karlie Leif (Bemidji, Minn./Bemidji) led the team with 15 digs.

Yellowjackets 3, Martin Luther 1

In the second match of the day the Yellowjackets faced off against Martin Luther. And things got rolling in a good way early, as the Yellowjackets took an early 6-2 lead. Then after Martin Luther got a couple points back the Yellowjackets responded and increased the lead to eight, 12-4. The Knights came roaring back, however, and before they could blink the Yellowjackets found themselves in a 15-15 tie. The score would be tied two more times before Martin Luther took the lead at 18-17. They would hold it the rest of the way and took the first set 25-22.

It was a tight start to the second set as well, with the teams trading points for most of the first half. The largest lead was held by the Yellowjackets, and it was only four points, 12-8. In the first set, when the Yellowjackets hit 12 points Martin Luther took over. It wouldn't be the same in the second set. The gap closed to 13-10 before the Yellowjackets went on to win six of eight points to give themselves some breathing room. The Knights closed the gap somewhat, but it was too little, too late as the Yellowjackets evened the match, winning the second set 25-19.

The third set followed the same pattern as the first two, with tight play in the early going. The lead changed hands four times early until Martin Luther pushed ahead. The Knights opened up a four-point advantage at 15-11, but that's when the Yellowjackets woke up and took over the set, and the match. A kill from Alexis Landherr (Cambridge, Minn./Cambridge-Isanti) started the rally and Leif served the Yellowjackets to four straight points, and a 16-15 lead. The Yellowjackets would go on a 9-2 run to close out the set 25-17 and take a 2-1 lead in the match.

The fourth set was nothing like the previous three, as it was the only one in the match where one team truly dominated, and that team was the Yellowjackets. They surged ahead 10-2 early and never looked back, rolling over the Knights 25-12 and sealing the match with a 3-1 win.

After a rough opening match the Yellowjackets shored things up offensively, cutting down on the errors and attacking at a percentage of .318, well above where they were in the first match of the day. Bandelin had a monster match, finishing with a season-high 20 kills. Ashlee Bayer (Cameron, Wis./Cameron) was the other Yellowjacket in double figures, finishing with 10 kills. VerWay once again led the Yellowjackets in assists, finishing with a season-high 48.

Defensively Leif led the Yellowjackets with eight kills while Bandelin and VerWay had seven each. Gabrielle Olson (Menomonie, Wis./Menomonie) had four blocks.

With the win the Yellowjackets (8-4, 0-0 UMAC) snapped their mini-losing streak at two games. They will return to action Saturday in day two of the UMAC Preview. They will take on Minnesota Morris at 1:00 p.m. and Northwestern at 3:00 p.m.
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Players Mentioned

Stephanie Bandelin

#16 Stephanie Bandelin

OH
6' 0"
Senior
Alexis Landherr

#9 Alexis Landherr

RSH
5' 9"
Junior
Emily VerWay

#1 Emily VerWay

S
5' 7"
Freshman
Karlie Leif

#3 Karlie Leif

DS
5' 6"
Freshman
Bailey Romans

#11 Bailey Romans

RSH
6' 4"
Freshman
Molly Trapp

#15 Molly Trapp

RSH
6' 6"
Freshman
Ana Biscaia

#17 Ana Biscaia

OH
5' 9"
Freshman
Ashlee Bayer

#18 Ashlee Bayer

MH
5' 10"
Freshman

Players Mentioned

Stephanie Bandelin

#16 Stephanie Bandelin

6' 0"
Senior
OH
Alexis Landherr

#9 Alexis Landherr

5' 9"
Junior
RSH
Emily VerWay

#1 Emily VerWay

5' 7"
Freshman
S
Karlie Leif

#3 Karlie Leif

5' 6"
Freshman
DS
Bailey Romans

#11 Bailey Romans

6' 4"
Freshman
RSH
Molly Trapp

#15 Molly Trapp

6' 6"
Freshman
RSH
Ana Biscaia

#17 Ana Biscaia

5' 9"
Freshman
OH
Ashlee Bayer

#18 Ashlee Bayer

5' 10"
Freshman
MH