Ferris State Volleyball Wins NCAA Match To Reach Regional Semifinals For 11th Time In Last 12 Years

FSU Postgame Press Conference 

Big Rapids, Mich. - The Ferris State University women's volleyball squad advanced to the NCAA Division II Midwest Regional Semifinals for the 11th time in the past 12 seasons the event has been held, topping former Great Lakes Intercollegiate Athletic Conference (GLIAC) rival Hillsdale in a thrilling 3-2 decision on Thursday (Nov. 30) afternoon in St. Louis, Mo.

The Bulldogs opened their 27th all-time NCAA Tournament appearance by beating the Chargers 15-12 in the deciding fifth set. With the win, the second-seeded Bulldogs will next face sixth-seeded Rockhurst (Mo.) in the regional semifinals on Friday (Dec. 1) night at 6 p.m. (ET).

FSU earned a close 26-24 victory in the opening set of Thursday's regional quarterfinals before the Chargers responded with a 25-17 win in the second frame. Ferris State battled back to record a 25-23 win in the third, but the Chargers answered with a 25-18 triumph in the fourth set to force the deciding frame.

With the win, the Bulldogs improved to 26-7 overall this season while Hillsdale closed the year with a 27-7 mark.

Junior outside hitter Olivia Henneman-Dallape led the way for Ferris State with a match-high 25 kills in the win. Meanwhile, middle hitter Syann Fairfield tallied 12 kills and Claire Nowicki had 11 kills for the Bulldogs.

Ferris State finished the day with 63 assists, including 57 by junior setter Kaylee Maat.

Defensively, the Bulldogs were strong as Leah Bylut produced a career-high and school single-match record 42 digs for the Bulldogs. Nowicki added 22 digs with Maat totaling 16 digs. Emma Bleecher contributed 14 digs and Kenzy Corstange had 12 digs for the Bulldogs.

Ferris State also got four block assists from Nowicki and three by Chelsie Freeman as the Bulldogs totaled six team blocks. Both Nowicki and Bleecher also had two service aces each for the Bulldogs, who finished the match with six aces overall.

The Bulldogs, who have won their last five matches to date this year, posted 66 total kills with 32 attack errors on a total of 220 attempts, hitting .155 overall. FSU also generated 118 digs in addition to six aces and six blocks. The 188 digs mark the fourth-highest single match output in Bulldog history.

On the opposite side, Hillsdale hit .186 for the day, finishing with 63 kills and 23 errors on 215 attempts. The Chargers posted 108 digs, eight aces and seven blocks. Marilyn Popplewell led HC with 20 kills while Alli Wiese netted 38 digs and Lauren Passaglia garnered 52 assists.

The winner of Friday evening's regional semifinal will advance to Saturday's (Dec. 2) regional championship match, which is slated for a 8 p.m. (ET) start.