Megan Edmunds, LSSULakers.com

BIG RAPIDS, Mich.-- After going 0-2 on Friday, the Lake Superior State volleyball team dropped its final two matches of the Ferris State Volleyball Invitational on Saturday falling to non-conference Mercyhurst in straight sets (25-14, 25-22, 25-18) and were edged by Clarion in five sets (25-18, 25-22, 21-25, 20-25, 9-15).

With the losses, the Lakers slip to 0-4 to start the 2018 season. Lake State returns to the court next weekend (Aug. 31 & Sept.1) at the Northern Michigan's Wildcat Invitational where they'll continue non-conference competition with matches against Minnesota-Crookston, St. Cloud State, Minnesota-Duluth and Bemidji State.

Game 1:
Lake State was led offensively by freshman Kelly Walter who notched five kills in the loss. Sophomore Sarah Bailey and freshman Halle Grulke both had the next-best kills total with four each. Grulke also led the team in hitting percentage (.250) and assists (15).

Senior Paige Gotham totaled ten digs to lead the defense effort while Grulke finished with nine.

Mercyhurst's offense was led by Katie Baird's 12 kills. Zoe Gadomski topped their defense with 12 digs.

Lake Superior totaled a .021 hitting percentage for the match while Mercyhurst hit .204 overall.

Game 2:
Walter also led the second game in kills, tallying 13. Reid had 11 to round out a team total of 43 for the match.

Grulke led the Lakers with a .250 hitting percentage with Walter posting the next-best at .194.

Reid also held the defense down with 27 digs, while Gotham tallied 21. Grulke's 34 assists led the team.

Clarion's Julia Holden sparked their team's offense with 22 kills and Crissy Cotton backstopped the squad defensively with her 39 digs.

Lake State's hitting percentage was .070, while Clarion's was .084.

The Lakers will open their home and conference schedule on Sept. 7 with a matchup against Northern Michigan at 6:30 p.m. For ticket information, visit lssulakers.com or calls the ticket office at

906-635-2601.

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