HAMMOND, Ind. – The Saginaw Valley State University volleyball team stumbled in a 3-1 defeat on the road against Purdue Northwest on Friday evening. The Cardinals took the first set after hitting a match-high .286 but couldn't pull out another set win in four tightly contested battles.

Sarah Veale had a great night as she recorded 17 kills and 10 digs for her second double-double of the 2023 season. Ava Beard led with 23 assists and was one dig short of a double-double. Kelsey Vittitow had a team-best 12 digs on the night.

Veale recorded six of her kills in the first set as she helped lead the team to a 25-22 win in the first frame to take an early lead in the match. SVSU used a 4-0 run to rally back from two points down to leading by the same margin. The score remained in favor of the Cardinals until a kill by the Pride knotted things at 21 all. Veale sparked three straight points for SVSU before Saginaw Valley closed out the first set with a 1-0 lead.

The Cardinals fought out of a 15-9 deficit with two 4-0 runs to trim the gap to two points. SVSU tied the score at 19 before a 4-0 run gave PNW the lead that would hold through the second set and tie the match at 1-1.

The third stanza was controlled by the Pride as they built a 24-18 edge. Madison Thompson registered back-to-back kills to ignite a 4-0 run that got the Cards within two points of forcing extra points, but Purdue Northwest was able to pull out the final point and take the 2-1 lead with a 25-22 decision.

A 7-0 run for the home team turned the tables in the fourth as the Pride controlled a 15-10 lead in the middle of the set. The lead grew to eight points (23-15) before the Cardinals rallied to trim the lead in half. Unfortunately, the gap was too large to overcome and Purdue Northwest earned the two points needed to end the set after four and secure the win.

The SVSU Cardinal volleyball team will look to bounce back against Davenport tomorrow (September 30) in Grand Rapids, Michigan. The match is set to begin at 5:00 p.m.