LINCOLN, Neb. - Nebraska Wesleyan opened the day with a sweep of Gordon before falling to 24
th ranked St. Olaf in four sets.
Molly Ramirez led the way with 20 kills in the first match against Gordon while
Macy Plucker totaled a team-high 19 kills in the second match against St. Olaf.
Nebraska Wesleyan 3, Gordon College 0 (25-17, 25-19, 25-17)
The Prairie Wolves kicked off day two of the P-Wolf Invitational with a straight-set victory over Gordon College, hitting .240 as a team while holding the Fighting Scots to a .103 hitting percentage.
Molly Ramirez paced the Nebraska Wesleyan offense with a match-high 20 kills on .485 hitting while adding two service aces and 11 digs.
Jera Schuerman contributed seven kills and two aces, while
Ella Foote added five kills and five total blocks. Setter
Elecea Saathoff directed the offense with 38 assists as the Prairie Wolves totaled 40 kills in the three-set win.
Defensively,
Grayson Piening led all players with 18 digs and
Macy Plucker added 13 digs. Nebraska Wesleyan recorded nine services aces and nine total team blocks. The Prairie Wolves controlled the match from the opening set, never trailing late in any set to win their fourth match of the season.
Nebraska Wesleyan 1, St. Olaf College 3 (19-25, 21-25, 26-24, 19-25)
Nebraska Wesleyan closed the tournament against No. 24 St. Olaf, pushing the nationally-ranked Oles to four sets before falling 1-3.
Macy Plucker led the Prairie Wolves with a team-high 19 kills while adding 18 digs. Molly Ramriez also finished with double digit kills totaling 11,
Ella Foote and
Jera Schuerman each chipped in eight kills.
Elecea Saathoff distributed 43 assists and added 10 digs.
The Prairie Wolves totaled 73 digs, led by Plucker's 18.
Grace Dehmer and
Grayson Piening each recorded 14 digs, while Saathoff added 10. Piening also contributed three service aces in the match.
After dropping the opening two sets, Nebraska Wesleyan battled back in the third. The Prairie Wolves earned a 26-24 victory in a tightly contested set that featured 13 ties and four lead changes. St. Olaf responded by hitting .276 in the fourth set to secure the match.
Nebraska Wesleyan finished with a 51-45 advantage in kills but was limited by 36 attack errors, compared to just 14 by St. Olaf. The Oles hit .230 as a team and were led by Evelyn Kreft's 14 kills.
UP NEXT
The Prairie Wolves return to Snyder Arena on Wednesday evening for a 6 p.m. matchup against York University (Neb.).
