The last day of the Mankato Tournament may have been the start of something great for Elisa Rizzoli.

The freshman put on a show as Lake Superior State's volleyball team (0-4) fell in straight sets to Minnesota-Crookston, 25-18, 26-24, 25-17. Rizzoli scored 17 kills, destroying the Golden Eagles defense by hitting .531 with no errors. She also tallied 12 digs in a complete performance for the Lakers.

She scored seven of Lake State's first twelve points, as the Lakers scrapped with the Golden Eagles (6-1) in the third of four games in Mankato, MN.

Lake State nearly came back to take the second set. Much like in the first, the teams stayed neck-and-neck into the late stages, but Minnesota-Crookston took what looked like a commanding five point lead.
That's when Olivia Boutorwick took over.

Two kills by the senior and three assists by Shea Berisoff got thee match back to a single point. The Golden Eagles managed to get the set to 23-20, but Boutorwick dominated again. A kill and service ace by her, and a kill by Rizzoli, leveled the set at 23-23. The two teams traded points, with the Golden Eagles taking the set 26-24.

Senior setter Vanessa Swerdon set a new career high with 23 assists, spraying passes all over the floor to Laker attackers. She played a key role in the Lakers attack. She also had seven digs.

Sophomore libero/defensive specialist Mia Garcia excelled for Lake Superior State. She notched 14 digs for the Lakers in the first of two matches on Saturday, a new career high.

Then she did it again a few hours later. Another 14 digs against Quincy (5-2) in the late afternoon contest, but the Lakers dropped the match in straight sets, 25-13, 25-9, 25-21.

The third set was extremely competitive, with neither team leading by more than two points until Quincy pulled away late. Madisyn Dykema thrilled for LSSU in that final set, scoring five kills. In her only set of the match, she hit .500, doing all of that damage on 10 swings. The junior from Hudsonville, MI put on a show as the Lakers wrapped up play in the Mankato Tournament.

The Lakers open GLIAC play on Friday, September 19^th at Allendale, MI against #13 Grand Valley State. Then it's a Saturday trip to Detroit to face Wayne State. The Lakers home opener brings Michigan Tech to the Bud Cooper Gymnasium on October 3^rd, followed by an October 4^th clash with Northern Michigan. Buy your tickets online or at the Norris Center box office.