UNIVERSITY CENTER, Mich. – The Saginaw Valley State University volleyball program hosted Purdue Northwest for their Dig for a Cure Match Friday evening. The Cardinals (4-16, 1-8 GLIAC) lost 3-2 to the Pride (7-12, 3-6 GLIAC) with set scores of 25-20, 21-25, 25-21, 18-25, and 14-16.

Sarah Veale led the match with 23 kills posting her seventh double-double with 10 digs as well. Sedona Coon had a double-double as well with 15 kills and 10 digs. Cola Sisk was in double digits with 10 kills and had four blocks. Elizabeth Bruschuk led defensively with 20 digs and tallied two of the Cardinals six aces. Ava Beard posted a match-high 48 assists along with four kills on eight attacks and seven digs.

Set One: Saginaw Valley 1, Purdue Northwest 0 (25-20)

SVSU fell 13-9 before tying the set on a 4-0 run before taking a lead with a 5-1 run. Veale tallied three kills in the run with Coon and Sisk earning the other two as the Cardinals went ahead 21-17. Saginaw Valley closed out taking the last two points on a service error and an ace by Coon.

Set Two: Saginaw Valley 1, Purdue Northwest 1 (21-25)

The Pride snagged their first big lead going ahead 14-9 with a 5-1 run. After extending the lead to seven, the Cardinals cut into it with a 3-1 run and a 3-0 run to make it 23-19 PNW. The Pride got to set point off a service error and closed the set on a kill three points later.

Set Three: Saginaw Valley 2, Purdue Northwest 1 (25-21)

A fast start for Purdue Northwest put them ahead 10-3 with a 9-1 run. A 5-2 run for the Cardinals cut into the lead as Sisk tallied two kills. Saginaw Valley used their own 9-1 run to flip the script as Bruschuk had two aces and Coon had two kills to put SVSU ahead 20-17. The Cardinals closed with a 3-0 run and then two points out of the final three to take a 2-1 edge.

Set Four: Saginaw Valley 2, Purdue Northwest 2 (18-25)

PNW slowly pushed ahead in the fourth set to establish a lead. A 6-1 run for the Pride extended their advantage to 20-11 before SVSU cut the lead to four with a 6-1 run. However, Purdue Northwest closed with a 4-1 run to force a decisive fifth set.

Set Five: Saginaw Valley 2, Purdue Northwest 3 (14-16)

SVSU jumped out to the early 5-3 lead with a 4-0 run as Coon and Veale had kills. They extended their lead to 8-5 to flip sides of the court in the fifth set. PNW knotted it up at 9-9 before taking the slim 11-10 lead. The Pride continued to take a one-point stride ahead of the Cardinals and SVSU continued to tie the final set until PNW tallied the final two points, the last on a block, to win the set and match.

Up Next: Saginaw Valley volleyball hosts the Parkside Rangers tomorrow, October 26. The match is set for 2:00 PM EST from the Hamilton Gymnasium.