RIPON, Wis. - Marian University women's volleyball (3-7, 0-0 NACC) opened the Red Hawks Invitational defeating host Ripon in five sets before falling to Saint Mary's (Minn.) in four sets.

In the opener against Ripon, Marian fell behind dropping the opening set 25-19 but bounced back with a dominant second set that saw the Sabres win 25-14 behind 13 kills and a .357 hitting percentage.  The Red Hawks were then able to rebound and take the third set 25-18.  In a must-win situation, the Sabres found themselves ahead 19-18 in the fourth set and closed out the set with a 6-3 spurt to force a fifth set.

The final set was all Marian as the Sabres scored 11 of the first 12 points, including the first seven, en route to an easy 15-4 victory.  The victory marks only the second win over Ripon since the 2013 season.

Freshman Monica Dreifuerst hit a match-high 21 kills to go with 11 digs, while senior Amber Yahr also had a double-double with 48 assists and 13 digs.  In the middle, sophomore Hanah Walther hit .444 with 10 kills, and senior Jenna Skroski led the back row with a team-high 21 digs.

Facing a fresh Saint Mary's (Minn.) team, the Marian offense kept on rolling in the opening set recording 16 kills off of a .213 hitting percentage to take the first set 25-23.  The Cardinals then bounced back in the second and third set holding Marian to only 15 points in each set.

The Sabres trailed 24-20 in the fourth set and held off three match-point opportunities, but were unable to force a fifth set for the second-consecutive match falling 25-23.

Dreifuerst added another 22 kills, a match-high, off of a .264 hitting percentage in the defeat.  Yahr put together a third-straight double-double as well behind a team-high 15 digs and 39 assists.

Marian concludes the invite tomorrow, Saturday, Sept. 14, taking on Beloit at 10 a.m. and Carroll at noon.