CEDARVILLE, Ohio – The Saginaw Valley State University volleyball program defeated Central State University and fell to Cedarville University on Friday at the Cedarville Invitational in Cedarville, Ohio. The Cardinals (1-1) swept the Marauders (0-2) 25-13, 25-21, 25-19 and were later swept by the Yellow Jackets (2-0) 25-16,25-21, 32-30.

The Cardinals stepped on the offensive pedal against Central State with six hitting above .267. Sarah Veale led the way with 17 kills against the Marauders and 13 against Cedarville for 30 on the day including two on a 9-0 run in set one against CSU and another in the 9-2 run to end set three and earn the match victory.

Sedona Coon was close to a double double in both matches with seven kills and nine digs against Central State and 12 kills and nine digs against Cedarville. Ava Beard ran the offense with 35 assists and 30 assists throughout the day. Elizabeth Bruschuk led with 13 digs in match one through her two sets played and Natalie Siler led defensively with 13 digs against the Yellow Jackets.

The difference between both games was the attack errors. The Cardinals hit .366 as a team in the first match before hitting .137 in match two with almost double the errors. They also took advantage of 10 service aces against the Marauders with Coon tallying three with Beard and Cola Sisk totaling two as well.

Saginaw Valley jumped ahead early on Central State taking a commanding eight-point lead in the first set. They kept up the offensive pressure and secured a 12-point set win. SVSU went down early in set two before using some runs to take a 14-9 lead. Kills by Sisk, Coon, Makaylah Roberts, and Veale got the Cardinals to set point at 24-15 before a Marauder run brought the set within three points. Beard got a kill to end it and claim a 2-0 set lead. The final set had three big runs with Saginaw Valley starting with an 8-3 run and ending on a 9-2 run to win the match.

The story was the opposite in match two against the Yellow Jackets. CU used an 8-0 run to get ahead by 10 in set one to claim a 1-0 advantage. The Cardinals got ahead in set two with a 6-0 run and kept battling neck and neck until they fell to a 4-0 run late. Set three showcased the most energy as Cedarville took a 15-8 lead before Saginaw Valley dug their way back to tie it 21-21. From there, both teams traded blows and held advantages in the final points to win by two before the Yellow Jackets claimed the final points to win set three 32-30 and claim the match victory.

Saginaw Valley volleyball is back in action at Callan Athletic Center in Cedarville, Ohio as they wrap up the invitational with a match against Lock Haven (0-2). Set one is scheduled to start at 12:00 PM EST.