HAMMOND, Ind. – The Saginaw Valley State University volleyball program got back in the win column Saturday morning defeating Kentucky Wesleyan at the Midwest Region Crossover. The Cardinals (4-15) defeated the Panthers (0-18) 3-1 with set scores of 24-26, 25-20, 25-22, and 25-18.

Cola Sisk led SVSU offensively with 11 kills and hit .526 with one error on 19 total attacks. Ella Lochbiler and Sedona Coon were in double digits with 10 kills each. Elizabeth Bruschuk led defensively with 10 digs and also had two aces. Jackie Scheiber was the primary second touch with 41 assists and had five of the Cardinals 10 aces as well. Sage Schumacher shined in the middle of the net with nine kills on 12 attacks and had seven block assists.

Set One: Saginaw Valley took an early 5-1 lead as Rachel Townsend got an ace and Coon ended the run with a kill. The Panthers started to dig back before a 3-0 run for the Cardinals extended their lead to 10-6. Kentucky Wesleyan used a 6-1 run to take the Panthers first lead of the set. A 6-1 run for the Cardinals flipped the advantage again with Schumacher, Scheiber, and Townsend tallying kills. The Panthers surged back with a 7-2 run after the Cardinals forced extra points and Kentucky Wesleyan won 26-24.

Set Two: Another fast start for SVSU as an 8-0 run put the Cardinals ahead 8-1 with Scheiber tallying back-to-back aces. A 5-1 Panthers run cut the lead to three before another run tied the set at 13-13. Kentucky Wesleyan used a 5-0 run to go ahead 18-14 before a 5-1 run and a 6-0 run closed out the set for Saginaw Valley. SVSU got kills from Sisk, Coon, and Lochbiler and a block from Sisk and Schumacher during the runs.

Set Three: SVSU kept the early aggression taking a 5-1 lead in the third set. A 4-0 run for the Panthers cut the lead to one. The teams traded points as Saginaw Valley kept the slim edge. A Cardinal 5-1 run pushed their lead to five but a 4-0 run for the Panthers brought it back to a one-point set again. Schumacher, Lochbiler, and Scheiber teamed up for three kills and a block for Lochbiler and Schumacher to make it 23-19 SVSU. With a two-point lead, Sisk got the final kill to take a 2-1 set lead.

Set Four: The final set was the first that SVSU didn't jump out to a big lead to start. The Panthers went up 4-2 before a 7-0 run for Saginaw Valley put the Cardinals ahead 9-4. Sisk had two kills and Coon had one to finish the run. SVSU extended their lead with a 6-1 run to jump ahead 17-8 and eventually pushed their lead to double digits as they led 22-12. Kentucky Wesleyan started to cut the lead, but the Cardinals took two of the final three points to claim the set and match.

Up Next: Saginaw Valley volleyball returns home after more than a month on the road. The Cardinals host Purdue Northwest on Friday, October 25 at 5:00 PM EST as they resume conference play. The match is SVSU volleyball's Dig For A Cure night at the Hamilton Gymnasium.