MEQUON, Wis. (SabreAthletics.com) – Second-place Concordia University Wisconsin came out strong on an emotional senior night and handed the Marian University women's volleyball team a straight sets defeat inside R. John Buuck Field House, tonight, Oct. 22.

The Sabres (9-17, 5-5 NACC) tried to hand the Falcons (20-5, 9-1 NACC) just their second conference loss of the year with a close first set, but the hosts hung on and built enough momentum, thereafter, to seal the victory on senior night.

In the first set, Marian kept it close, tying it at 9-9 before the Falcons responded with a 7-2 run to take a 16-11 lead. The Sabres would cut it to a point at 19-18, but CUW proved too much at the outset, going away, 25-22.

Marian tallied two more kills than CUW in the set, 12-10, but committed 11 errors to CUW's six. It was the only positive hitting set for the Sabres, who totaled an .026 percentage on 39 total attacks.

Meanwhile, the Falcons got progressively more efficient, hitting .144 as a team by the end, including .194 in the final set.

Marian was led by Jessica Roberts, who had 8 kills on 32 attacks, while Kathryn Braunling added 7 kills on 29 attacks. Amber Baker dished out 24 assists and chipped in 15 digs for yet another double-double.

For the Falcons, a balanced offensive attack led the way with Ashley Jehlicka and Kaily Moegenburg each totaling 9 kills on 25 and 22 attacks, respectively. Jehlicka added 11 assists and 10 digs to fall just one kill shy of a triple-double.

The Sabres are in must-win mode heading into Saturday's tilt with MSOE. Marian currently sits in a tie for the sixth and final NACC tournament spot with Benedictine at 5-5 in league play. The Sabres hold the tie-breaker thanks to a five-set win over the Eagles earlier in the year, which means a win over MSOE will clinch the final seed in the NACC tournament. First serve is set for 7 p.m. at the Kern Center in Milwaukee.