Bulldog Volleyball Posts Two Sweeps In Strong Opening Day Performance At Regional Crossover

Big Rapids, Mich. - The Ferris State University women's volleyball squad kept rolling on Friday (Oct. 15) as the Bulldogs opened the nation's largest collegiate volleyball tournament with a pair of victories at the Midwest Region Crossover in Hammond, Ind.

The Bulldogs topped Lindenwood (Mo.) of the Great Lakes Valley Conference (GLVC) 3-0 before coming back to sweep Great Midwest Athletic Conference (G-MAC) foe Findlay by an identical 3-0 margin in the finale.

In the opener, the Bulldogs raced past Lindenwood, taking the three frames by scores of 25-17, 25-22 and 25-21. FSU hit .253 overall for the match in garnering the triumph.

The Bulldogs were paced in the opener by middle hitter Kira Merkle with nine kills. Freshman Keona Salesman also totaled nine kills in the balanced effort. Defensively, senior hitter Katie O'Connell had a squad-best nine digs with senior libero Nina Gorgijevska adding six. Bulldog freshman setter Kaylee Maat finished with 29 assists.

Ferris State limited the Lions to a .165 attack figure in the opening win of the day.

In the finale, the Bulldogs ran their winning streak to eight consecutive matches with a 25-23, 25-15, 25-22 victory over Findlay. With the win, FSU improved to 13-4 overall this season.

The Bulldogs compiled an impressive .312 attack percentage in the contest and came up with 45 digs.

O'Connell fueled the Bulldogs in the finale with 14 kills while Merkle added 10 kills. Gorgijevska posted a team-best 18 digs and Maat had 33 assists.

Ferris State wraps up action in the Midwest Region Crossover on Saturday (Oct. 16) versus Missouri-St. Louis beginning at 1:45 p.m. (ET).