FAIRBANKS, Alaska — Minnesota State defeated Tiffin 3-0 (25-13, 25-15, 25-22) on Saturday. The Mavericks hit .352 with 39 kills, while Tiffin finished with 27 kills and a .056 hitting percentage.
"Good finish to a hard fought weekend," said Head Coach
Corey Phelps. "The last two weekends have been just what we needed to adjust and be more prepared for the conference season. I'm happy that throughout the challenges we've faced so far, we've showed the strength of our culture while also being consistently great teammates."
Jadyn Lester finished with 30 assists, four service aces, five kills and three total blocks. Lester has contributed at least 30 set assists in four straight matches.
Addison Foor tied for the team lead with 10 kills while hitting .400.
Savannah Meyer collected 13 digs and added one service ace.
Olivia Sturgis posted five total blocks and added three kills.
Set One
The Mavericks controlled the opening set from the start and finished it off 25-13. They scored the first five points, with Lester recording a kill and three service aces during the early burst while
Avery Rosenberg contributed a block on a Tiffin attack error. After Tiffin trimmed the gap to 13-7,
Lily Riese put down a kill, and the Mavericks took seven of the next eight rallies to move ahead 20-8, including a
Kaelyn Wieland ace and back-to-back Foor kills that pushed the score to 18-7.
Sturgis and Meyer also contributed points in the stretch. The Mavericks pushed the set to 23-9 before Tiffin scored four straight, but
Emily Clausen delivered consecutive kills, both assisted by Lester, to close the set.
Set Two
The Mavericks trailed 2-1 before Riese tied the second set with a kill, and after Tiffin pulled even at 3-3, a block by Sturgis and Clausen gave the Mavericks the lead before
Morgan Bjella served four straight points for an 8-3 advantage. Tiffin stopped that stretch with a service error, but the Mavericks won seven of the next eight rallies from 8-4 to 15-5, getting two Lester kills, a Sturgis kill, and blocks involving Lester, Sturgis and Foor.
After the Mavericks extended the lead to 18-9, Tiffin scored three straight on an attack error, a Symari Scott kill and a Lexi Barber ace, but Clausen answered with a kill and Bjella followed with an ace and another Lester and Sturgis block to make it 21-12. After the teams traded points to 22-14, a Tiffin service error and a Lester kill moved the Mavericks to 24-14, and Lester added the final kill after Katelyn Owens answered for Tiffin for a 25-15 set win.
Set Three
The Mavericks withstood a late Tiffin push in the third set, scoring the final three points after a 22-22 tie to win 25-22. Foor supplied the Mavericks' first three points on kills set by Lester, and the teams traded points through a 10-9 Tiffin lead. The Mavericks answered by winning five of the next six points, with
Ellie Voth and Clausen combining on a block at 10-10, Riese delivering two kills, and Bjella serving an ace to move the score to 14-11.
The Mavericks later stretched the margin to 18-13, but Tiffin worked back to 19-18 and then scored three straight from 22-19, tying it at 22-22 on back-to-back Barber aces. Clausen put the Mavericks back in front with a kill from Lester, Riese followed with another kill from Lester, and Sturgis and Lester combined on the block that closed the set.
Up next, the Minnesota State volleyball team hosts No. 2 Wayne State on Friday at 6 p.m. in the Taylor Center in Mankato, Minn.
Stay up to date on all Maverick Athletics news by downloading the Maverick mobile app for exclusive content, gameday notifications, schedules, rosters and more. Fans can also follow @MinnStAthletics on Instagram and X and like the Minnesota State Mavericks Facebook page.
