MILWAUKEE - Marian University women's volleyball (3-3, 0-0 NACC) was defeated by Grinnell in five sets before sweeping Knox at day one of the Raider Invite.
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VS. GRINNELL (L, 3-2, 17-25, 16-25, 26-24, 25-19, 15-13)
- The opening day of the Raider Invite couldn't have gone better for Marian as the Sabres quickly jumped ahead 2-0 with a pair of dominating sets.
- Marian took the first points and never looked back in the first set, while the second set saw the Sabres start with an 11-4 lead.
- The Sabres had a 16-12 lead in the third set and brought that advantage out to 24-22.
- The Grinnell comeback would begin with the Pioneers taking the next four points to keep the match alive.
- With that momentum, the Pioneers jumped out to an 8-3 lead and didn't let Marian back in as the two sides headed to the fifth set.
- The two sides nearly went point-for-point the entire length of the fifth with Marian leading 13-12.
- Grinnell was able to put together another late rally scoring the final three points to earn the win.
VS. KNOX (W, 3-0, 25-17, 25-19, 25-20)
- Marian didn't allow the defeat affect them as Marian used a run of six straight points to lead 16-9 in set one against Knox.
- The Sabres were able to cruise the rest of the way to once again take the opening set.
- Another strong start saw Marian jump ahead 12-5 and easily cruise to a win in set two.
- The dominating starts continued in set three as a 10-3 start helped pave the way for a sweep.
- Knox was able to cut its deficit down to as small as three before a kill from Gabrielle Bulkow and ace from Morgan Simac closed out the match.
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VS. GRINNELL
- Marian had a 55-49 edge in kills and 79-74 advantage in digs.
- Each team had a strong match at the service line with Marian recording 13 aces and Grinnell 12.
- The Sabres held Grinnell to single-digit kills in three of the five sets.
- Marian is now 1-2 all-time against the Pioneers with this being the second five-set match between the two programs.
- The Sabres are now 1-1 this season in five-set matches.
VS. KNOX
- Marian hit .315Â and finished with a 43-22 edge in kills.
- The Sabre defense held up its end holding the Prairie Fire to a .000 attack percentage and a 38-31 advantage for digs.
- This was the second sweep of the season for the Sabres.
- Marian remains undefeated all-time against Knox at 3-0 with this being the first meeting since 2014.
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