DEARBORN, Mich. – The University of Michigan-Dearborn volleyball team gave Lourdes University all it could handle in a Wolverine-Hoosier Athletic Conference contest Friday at the UM-Dearborn Fieldhouse.
The Wolverines battled the Gray Wolves, who were receiving votes in the latest NAIA Coaches' Poll, through a pair of back-and-forth sets to start the match, with the teams splitting to leave the score tied at 1-1.
Lourdes scored four straight to pull away late in the third set and held off a Wolverine comeback in the fourth to escape with the 3-1 win. The set scores were 25-23, 20-25, 25-22, 25-17. The loss drops UM-Dearborn to 3-9 overall and 0-3 in the WHAC.
Four Wolverines finished with double-digit kills, led by junior Bronte Michura with 15, while sophomore Gina Giacomini added 13. Seniors Katherine Nealy and Erin Parrinello recorded 11 and 10 kills, respectively.
The UM-Dearborn defense carried the team at times in the match, as the Wolverines recorded four solo blocks and seven total, led by Nealy with two solo and one assist. Mackenzie Fuleky chipped in with a solo block and two block assists. Senior Libero Caitlyn Carlson finished with a team-high 22 digs, while junior Daniella Barile added 22 assists and 16 digs.
The Wolverines continue league action against No. 19 Madonna University at 1 pm Saturday in Livonia, Mich.
