SUPERIOR, Wis. – Wednesday evening saw the Yellowjacket volleyball team take on Minnesota Morris in the Upper Midwest Athletic Conference (UMAC) semifinal match of 2024. Earlier in the season, the 'Jackets swept the Cougars 3-0 inside Mertz Mortorelli Gym before getting reverse swept inside James Gremmels Court in Morris, Minn.
 
As the No. 2 seed in the postseason tournament, UWS earned the right to host the No. 3 seeded Cougars in a loser-go-home match.
 
In a highly anticipated battle between two tough squads, the Yellowjackets prevailed and defeated Minnesota Morris 3-1, advancing to the championship match this Saturday.
 
Match Notes

• The Cougars jumped out to an early 3-0 lead, beginning with a service ace and a Yellowjacket attack error. UWS responded with kills from Maiana Stark (Germantown, Wis./Germantown) and Ayla Oltmanns (Gilbert, Minn./Duluth East), with a service ace to counter.
• Both teams traded points and the lead midway through the set until UW-Superior embarked on a five-point rally, led by kills from Gabi Schwirtz (Plato, Minn./Glencoe-Silver Lake) and Addy Gangl (Nashwauk, Minn./Nashwauk-Keewatin) to lead 20-13.
• Minnesota Morris began to muster a comeback and come within three at 23-20, but Oltmanns finished a kill sent from Colleen Claude (Centuria, Wis./Homeschool), setting up a set point opportunity. A pair of Cougar kills followed, but Stark capped the opener with a kill, giving UWS a 25-22 victory.
• UWS held much of the momentum in set number two, jumping out to a 6-2 lead. Sydney Smith (Milltown, Wis./Unity) logged a kill to break a 2-2 tie before back-to-back attack errors boosted the 'Jackets up four.
• A few short rallies helped push the Yellowjackets out in front by 20-9. The Cougars added six points to their lead, but UWS logged back-to-back daggers from Makenna Hohbein (Holdingford, Minn./Holdingford) to earn a 25-15 victory in set two.
• UMM leaped to a 6-1 lead in the third and never looked back. Controlling the match by utilizing Yellowjacket miscues and countering with a barrage of kills, the Cougars would steal the set by a 25-18 decision.
• The 'Jackets fell 3-0 in the fourth but responded with six-straight points off Cougar attack errors and a kill from Stark, followed by a Hohbein ace. UMM countered and tied things up at 6-6, but back-to-back mistakes aided the 'Jackets who got kills from Gangl and Stark, commencing another six-point rally.
• From there UWS maintained its lead through the remainder of the set, downing the Cougars and moving onto championship night.
• Hohbein and Stark capped their night with 13 and 10 kills, respectively, while Oltmanns added nine.
• Jenna Anderson (Bemidji, Minn./Bemidji) posted another impressive night, logging nearly half of the Yellowjackets' digs on the contest. She would finish with 42, while the team posted 99.
• Claude and Schwirtz each added 21 assists to their season totals, while Anderson had five.

In the other semifinal match of the evening, Northwestern earned a victory over North Central in straight sets, earning the right to host the championship match on Saturday. The Eagles and 'Jackets face off inside the Ericksen Center for the league title at 7 p.m.
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