Box Score SAULT STE. MARIE, Mich. – The Lake Superior State (LSSU) volleyball program opened up Great Lakes Intercollegiate Athletic Conference (GLIAC) play with a 3-0 sweep over the visiting Saginaw Valley State (SVSU) Cardinals on Thursday.

Both teams traded points to open the match with the Lakers leading 4-3 after kills from Valeriya Varnakova (Ufa, Russia) and Morgan Deming (Boyne City, Mich.) as well as a service ace by Olivia Boutorwick (Macomb, Mich.). The Cardinals were able to pull slightly ahead, but the Lakers kept fighting, keeping the score close. Then, they made their move, battling back with a 5-0 run to knot up the score at 18-18 that was capped off with an emphatic kill from Varnakova. Both teams continued to fight, battling their way to 25-25, but kills from Gia Waters (Minneapolis, Mich.) and Varnakova put the set away 27-25 to give LSSU the early 1-0 advantage.

Both programs battled early in the second set, but the Lakers fought back with a 6-1 run to take a 13-10 advantage with an ace from libero Ally Lasley (Birch Run, Mich.). SVSU was able to fight back to tie up the score at 18-18, but the Lakers were ultimately able to assert themselves, using a 4-1 scoring spurt to force multiple set point opportunities. The Cardinals were able to stave off the Lakers for a pair of points, but Mariana Velasque (Rio de Janeiro, Brazil) was there to put the set away at 25-23 to push SVSU to the brink.

The Lakers claimed the first two points to start the third set with a kill from Velasque, but the Cardinals were able to rattle off five straight. The Lakers would then dig in to take the lead with an 8-2 run with a kill from Velasque and a block from Deming. The Cardinals were able to get back to within two, but the Lakers were ready to put the match to bed, dominating the remainder of the set to the tune of a 12-1 run to close out the 3-0 sweep that featured four service aces from Lasley.

The Lakers used a balanced attack, led by Waters with 10 while Velasque had 9 and both Deming and Varnakova had 7 with both Deming and Giselle Wiitanen (Mt. Pleasant, Mich.) hitting at an efficient rate of .500 or better. Vanessa Swerdon (Toronto, Ontario) led all players in assists, and Velasque and Deming each posted 3 blocks while Lasley posted game-highs in digs (10) and blocks (5).

The Lakers return to action on Friday, Sept. 20 when they host GLIAC newcomers Roosevelt in the Bud Cooper Gymnasium with the first serve scheduled for 6:30 p.m. In conjunction with the volleyball game, Lake Superior State will also be recognizing the 50^th anniversary of women's sports at LSSU.