SAINT PAUL, Minn. – The Yellowjacket volleyball team traveled to the Ericksen Center on Saturday to face off against No. 24 Northwestern. In a back-and-forth match, the Yellowjackets nearly knocked off the top-ranked team in the Upper Midwest Athletic Conference (UMAC), but in the fifth set the Eagles came back to claim a 3-2 victory.
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Match Notes
- Both Makenna Hohbein (Holdingford, Minn./Holdingford) and Kyndra Peterson (Mounds View, Minn./Irondale) picked up early kills for UWS, and later Sydney Smith (Milltown, Wis./Unity) would log a pair of kills of her own to keep them within striking distance of the Eagles. A pair of three-point rallies proved to give UNW the edge in set one, as they won 25-18.
- Six consecutive points gave UNW an early lead in the second, but the Yellowjackets crawled their way back and gained the upper hand. Hohbein, alongside defensive efforts from Smith, Peterson, Melissa Hoff (Holmen, Wis./Holmen) and Taylor Tollefson (Pine City, Minn./Pine City) helped shake up the lead.
- At 16-14, both teams traded points and the lead but kills from Kate Jamtgaard (Grand Rapids, Minn./Grand Rapids) and Hohbein secured the 25-23 win in the second.
- Both teams volleyed the lead and points once again, and a pair of four-point rallies for the Eagles provided them with a 25-13 win in the third.
- UWS responded in a big way in the fourth, as Aspen Gentele (Alexandria, Minn./Alexandria) and Hoff logged back-to-back kills which later prompted an eight-point rally for the Yellowjackets. Hohbein and Jamtgaard logged kills while Kenzie Aber (Blaine, Minn./Blaine) logged three service aces as soon as she checked into the match.
- Peterson and Smith helped push the pace for the Yellowjackets before Coral Cook (Shawano, Wis./Shawano) added a service ace of her own. Superior kept the Eagles at bay for the remainder of the set, forcing a fifth after winning the fourth 25-17.
- UNW logged a 5-1 lead in the fifth, but kills from Carlie Lohman (South Range, Wis./Superior) and Smith leveled things at 6-6. A combination of Yellowjacket miscues and Eagle kills gave them six consecutive points, winning the fifth 15-7.
- Hohbein led with 19 kills, while Smith and Jamtgaard finished with eight and six, respectively.
- Aber fired three aces to lead Sueprior, while Hohbein and Cook each had one.
- Savanna Hering (Superior, Wis./Superior) logged 28 digs to lead the defensive efforts, while Hohbein had 25 and Alaina Wilberg (Anoka, Minn./Anoka) garnered nine.
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The Yellowjackets (17-8, 8-2 UMAC) stay on the road for their final two matches of the regular season. They will face off against Crown College Friday, with a first serve scheduled for 5 p.m.
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