Dillon Hogan/Winonan

The Winona State University volleyball team returned home this weekend for games against University of Mary and Minot State. The Warriors used stellar individual performances to lead the team to two home victories on successive nights.

The Warriors faced the University of Mary Nov. 1 and were victorious in a 3-0 sweep. The Warriors’ first set saw them dominate from the start, gaining as much as a seven point lead and finalizing the win with a 25-19 victory.

In the second game, the Warriors again used strong offensive outputs to put away the University of Mary this time by a score of 25-16. The third and final game was a retelling of the first two games and the Warriors took the game 25-19 for the match win.

A balanced offensive attack from the Warriors was the key to the victory over the University of Mary. Despite no player recording double-digit kills, five players helped to contribute six kills or more to the cause.

Senior Bekah Saugen tied the team lead with nine kills even with a .061 hitting percentage. Kylea Roeglin had an impressive performance also, finishing with nine kills, zero errors and a .562 hitting percentage.

Assisting the Warriors were Kaley Jacobson and Elena Kruesel, who each finished the game with 15 assists. Saugen and Jamie Cairncross were the defensive leaders, with each reaching double-digit digs with 19 and 12 respectively.

When asked about the season up to this point, Roeglin said, “As the season is progressing, I feel like it’s not going how we want it to. However, if we continue to work hard at practice and to play each match with heart we will end the season on a positive note.”

The Warriors earned their second win of the weekend against the Minot State Beavers Saturday, Nov. 2.

Junior Mikaela Girard had a nearly perfect night hitting .909 for the game. Girard was 10 for 11 putting her second on Winona State’s single-game hitting percentage list.

Their first match started off with the Warriors winning the first five points en route to the 25-14 victory, which saw a .424 hitting percentage as a team. A much closer contested second game gave the Warriors some trouble, but ultimately they were able to come up with the victory.

With the score tied at 17, Girard had a clutch kill and gave the Warriors a lead they would not give up for the 25-20 win.

A rough third match had the Warriors hitting only .065 and allowing Minot State the easy 25-13 win. The fourth and final match saw the Warriors take back the game from Minot 25-20 for the match victory.

Saugen led the team with 13 kills and 20 digs for her 15th season double-double. Rachel Polland also contributed to the cause with eight kills and a .318 hitting percentage. The Warriors’ assist leaders were again Kruesel who, along with Kayla Uhlenhake and Jacobson, had 16, 14, and 12 assists respectively. Leah Perri led the Warriors defensively with 21 digs.

The Warriors are now 10-15 overall and 7-9 in the NSIC. They return to action this weekend with home games against Minnesota Duluth on Friday, Nov. 8, at 7 p.m. and St. Cloud State Saturday, Nov. 9, at 5 p.m.

Contact Dillon at [email protected]