Whiting, Ind. – After two losses at the Calumet College of St. Joseph Invite on Friday, the Cardinal Stritch University women’s volleyball team came back hard for a split. The Wolves lost a hard fought match in five sets against Mount Mercy College before coming back for a win against Calumet St. Joseph in three sets. The win was bittersweet, as Stritch ended a four-game losing streak, but easily took the Crimson Wave, who they fell to in conference play earlier this week.
The Wolves came out strong in their morning match against Mount Mercy, whom they had lost to earlier this season. After dropping the first set 23-25, Stritch dominated set two, 25-15, tying the match 1-1. The two teams traded sets again to cause a fifth, deciding set. Though the Wolves stayed in it, they couldn’t break through for the win, and fell 13-15.
Ashley Wipperfurth (Sauk City, Wis.) led Stritch with 12 kills in the match. Alyssa Ahmad (St. Francis, Wis.) continued her dominance at the net, earning 10 kills, a solo block, and nine block assists. Jackie Schmitz (Menomonee Falls, Wis.) put up a season-high 35 digs in the match.
Stritch took the opportunity to pay back Calumet St. Joseph in their second match of the day. They gave a more impressive showing against the Crimson Wave this time around, taking them in three quick sets (25-23, 25-29, 25-22).
Everyone got involved in the offense, as setters did a great job spreading out the ball. Anna Flock (Norwalk, Wis.) led with eight kills, while Ahmad added seven, and both Wipperfurth and Kaitlin Fischer (Mokena, Ill.) put down six. Shannon Petrack (Winneconne, Wis.) had a standout game, contributing a solo block and seven block assists. Stritch earned 12 total blocks as a team.
With the win, Stritch moves to 8-18 overall and remains 2-5 in the CCAC. They return home on Tuesday to face Purdue North Central at 7:00 p.m. for Senior and Parents Night.