UNIVERSITY CENTER, Mich. – The Saginaw Valley State University volleyball program hosted No. 16 Grand Valley State University Saturday afternoon at the Hamilton Gymnasium. The Cardinals (3-9, 1-3 GLIAC) fell in three sets to the Lakers (11-1, 3-1 GLIAC) with scores of 25-20, 25-19, and 25-19.

Sarah Veale posted her second double-double in as many matches with a team leading 11 kills and 11 digs. Natalie Siler tied Veale with 11 digs. Sage Schumacher hit .438 with eight kills and one error on 16 total attacks. Ava Beard tallied 25 assists as the Cardinals setter.

Set One: Grand Valley started hot with a 4-0 run before the Cardinals battled back. Ella Lochbiler started a 4-1 run with a kill to cut the lead to two. Ava Decker, Sedona Coon, and Veale teamed up for four kills in a 6-2 run later to make it 18-17 Lakers. GVSU responded with a 4-2 run before finishing with the final three points to claim the set.

Set Two: SVSU answered in set two starting with a 5-3 lead as Veale recorded two kills and Lochbiler recorded one. The Lakers flipped the advantage with a 4-0 run before a 5-1 run for Saginaw Valley gave them a 10-8 lead. The momentum swings continued as Grand Valley went on a 7-1 run to take a four-point lead. The Cardinals responded with four straight kills by four separate players to tie the set 15-15. GVSU pulled ahead with a 6-2 run before finishing the set with the final three points again.

Set Three: The final set had six ties until the Lakers broke out with a 3-0 run to put them ahead 11-8. Decker and Veale sprinkled in kills to keep the set close, but Grand Valley kept the three-to-four-point edge. GVSU extended their lead with a 3-0 run followed by a 2-0 run to win the set and the match.

Up Next: Saginaw Valley volleyball heads to the Upper Peninsula next week as they play Northern Michigan on Friday, October 4 and Michigan Tech on Saturday, October 5. Those matches are set for 6:30 PM EST and 4:00 PM EST respectively.