Box Score Mankato, Minn. --- The Minnesota State volleyball team opened conference play on the right foot Thursday evening as it swept the Winona State Warriors 25-21, 25-19 and 25-18.

With the win, MSU improves to 5-3 on the season, including a 1-0 mark in Northern Sun Intercollegiate Conference play. With the loss WSU falls to 3-7, with a 0-1 record in league play.

The first set featured plenty of back and forth action early with neither team managing to build a substantial lead. Trailing 16-15, the Mavericks finished the opening set on a 10-5 run the claim the opening set.

Sophomore Chandra Honebrink paced all hitters with six kills in the first frame, with freshman Courtney Anderson following closely with five kills. Sophomore Ellie Van De Steeg notched 15 helpers in the first set, while junior Jenna McNallan led the MSU defense with six digs.

The second set saw the Mavericks maintain a small lead throughout as they notched a 25-19 second set win. Van De Steeg ran the offense efficiently, dishing out 15 assists on 17 Maverick kills. McNallan led the MSU attack in second set with five kills, while Honebrink and junior Tiana Runck each added four kills.

MSU found itself trailing early on in the third set as the Warriors built an 11-7 lead. The Mavericks weathered the early storm and managed to run off six straight points to take a 13-11 lead. WSU managed to tie it back up at 13, but MSU closed out the set on a 12-5 run to secure the sweep with a 25-18 win.

Runck led the Maverick hitters with five third-set kills, while Van De Steeg passed out 10 assists.

For the match, Runck and Honebrink led all hitters with 12 kills each, with Runck boasting a .588 hitting percentage. Van De Steeg notched 40 assists, while McNallan posted a match-high 14 digs. Anderson posted six total blocks, including a pair of solo blocks.
As a team, MSU posted eight total team blocks, while hitting .270.

The Mavericks continue NSIC play on the road Saturday as they take on the Upper Iowa Peacocks. The opening serve is set for 4 p.m.
                                                                                       -30-