MILWAUKEE – The Wright State volleyball team battled all night long, but came up a few points short in the end, as the third-seeded Raiders fell to No. 2 seed Northern Kentucky in five sets Saturday night in the semifinals of the Horizon League Championship.
Wright State (23-8) saw five players finish the night with double-digit kills, but the back-and-forth battle saw Northern Kentucky (20-7) end the match with a 15-11 deciding fifth set to close the Raiders' season.
In three matchups this season, Wright State and Northern Kentucky went the distance and played five sets in all three. On Saturday night the teams traded set wins throughout, as NKU won the opening set 27-25 before a 25-18 Raider advantage in set two. NKU took the third set 25-22 but Wright State forced the deciding set with a 25-21 fourth set victory.
Three of the five Raiders with double-digit kills all finished with 14 kills, which was a season-high mark for
Teddie Sauer in what turned into her final match in a Wright State uniform.
Sam Ott also finished with 14 kills, while
Callie Martin tallied her 11th and final double-double of the year, finishing with 14 kills and 20 digs.
Megan Alders added 12 kills and
Nyssa Baker, another Raider senior, had 11 kills and a team-high four blocks in her final match. Martin also had four blocks alongside Baker, while Sauer and
Lainey Stephenson each had three.
Stephenson passed out 50 of Wright State's 58 assists, while Horizon League Defensive Player of the Year
Jenna Story had a match-high 34 digs in the loss.