Senior middle hitter Mia Berg recorded a double-double with 13 kills and 10 blocks while sophomore outside hitter Delaney Miller notched 17 kills to lead No. 2 Wayne State in a bounce-back 3-1 victory over No. 13 St. Cloud State Friday evening in Northern Sun Conference volleyball at Rice Arena in Wayne. WSC improves to 25-2 and 16-1 in the NSIC while SCSU slips to 19-7 and 12-5 in league play.
The first set was a back-and-forth battle with the two teams exchanging 12 ties and six lead changes. WSC held a 21-19 lead, but the visiting Huskies rallied and took the opening set in extra points 28-26.
Miller and Channatee Robles each accounted for five kills in the opening set for WSC while Berg had three kills and two blocks.
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The second set saw the Wildcats jump out to early leads of 6-2 and 11-6, then withstand a St. Cloud State rally to collect a 25-21 set victory.
SCSU got within one point several times, with the final time coming at 18-17. The Wildcats forced a pair of Husky attack errors followed by an SCSU service error and a Chloe Hanel kill to grab a 22-18 lead, and WSC closed the set with kills by Molly Romano and Miller for the 25-21 win.
Miller had six kills on eight swings in the second set for WSC to go with a pair of blocks.
WSC hit a match-best .424 in the third set with 15 kills and just one error on 33 attacks as the Wildcats rolled to a 25-16 win.
Berg had five kills on six attacks and three blocks to lead the charge in the third set. Hanel, Miller and Mattie Kamery each recorded three kills.
The fourth set saw the Wildcats rally late, scoring the final six points to close the match with a 25-21 win over the Huskies. The set showcased five lead changes and 10 ties with plenty of momentum swings as a 16-13 Wayne State lead turned into a 21-19 St. Cloud State lead, followed by six straight Wildcat points to end the set for a 25-21 win.
Highlighting the late surge were back-to-back service aces from Kamery. WSC also used a Husky serving error, a Hanel kill and a pair of SCSU attack errors to close the set.
Hanel had four kills in the set, with Kamery accounting for three kills and consecutive service aces along with two blocks.
Wayne State finished the match with a .327 hitting percentage while holding St. Cloud State to .224. SCSU had two more kills than WSC, 64-62, but the Wildcats forced 27 attack errors by the Huskies (12 on blocks) while Wayne State had just 10 errors. WSC held a 12-5 edge in blocks while SCSU had one more ace than the Wildcats, 6-5.
Miller's 17 kills led three Wildcats in double-digit kills. Berg posted a double-double with 13 kills and 10 blocks, which matched a career high. Hanel added 12 kills, with Kamery and Robles each recording nine.
Kamery had a team-high 15 digs along with four blocks, while junior libero Anna Borner picked up 14 digs and Robles added 11. Romano handed out 45 set assists in the win.
The Wildcats are home again Saturday, hosting Minnesota State in a 10 a.m. contest at Rice Arena.
