CEDARVILLE, Ohio. – The Saginaw Valley State University women's volleyball team swept Central State to gain a split in Friday's opening day action of the Cedarville University Tournament in the Callan Athletic Center.

SVSU opened with a tough four-set loss at the hands of West Liberty State (25-23, 19-25, 25-23, 25-23) before bouncing back nicely against Central State University, 25-20, 25-17, 25-13. The Cardinals are now 2-4 overall.

Against West Liberty University:

• SVSU was led by Madison Thompson with her match-best 14 kills.
• Rylee Zimmer added 12 kills, 17 digs, three assists, and two blocks.
• Sarah Veale also posted a double-double with 10 kills and 12 digs.
• Peyton Gerstacker had a well-rounded stat line with a match-high 39 assists, season's best five kills, two aces, 18 digs, and two blocks.
• The Cardinals' defense was paced by Kelsey Vittitow's 21 digs.
• The teams were nearly even across the statistical board, but the Hilltoppers held an edge in hitting percentage, .140 to .130
• Nina Billotto led West Liberty with 13 kills on a match-best .357 attack percentage

Against Central State:

• The Cardinals nearly doubled up Marauders in kills (41-23) and outhit their opponent, .226 to .028.
• Thompson again led the way for the SVSU offense with a match-high 14 kills and a tidy .290 hitting percentage.
• Zimmer posted 10 kills, three blocks, and 12 digs to lead the squad.
• Gerstacker recorded 35 assists
• SVSU closed the match in terrific fashion with a .387 attack percentage on 16 kills in 31 attempts with only four errors. CSU was held to a .065 clip.

Up Next

The Cardinals conclude the two-day tourney on Saturday with matches against Seton Hill (9 a.m.) and the host Yellow Jackets (4:30 p.m.).