MILWAUKEE – The Mount Mary University volleyball team played a wild weekend at the Blue Angel Bash picking up its first victory in dramatic fashion and splitting its opening day slate with a pair of five-set thrillers. MMU knocked off Rockford 26-24, 25-22, 20-25, 21-25, 15-12 before falling to Ripon in the nightcap 25-21, 25-14, 16-25, 20-25, 15-3.
The day one split at the Bloechl Center moved Mount Mary's season record to 1-6 overall.
MMU 3, Rockford 2
Three Blue Angels recorded double-digit kills and four added double-digit digs as Mount Mary secured its first win of the season, 3-2.
Sophomore Brianna Ecker (Fond du Lac, Wis./Stockbridge) led MMU with 13 kills, and juniors Emma Carufel (St. Francis, Wis./St. Francis) and Aislinn Strusz (Aurora, Ill./West Aurora) each added 12 kills offensively.
Freshman Emma White (Scottsdale, Ariz./Saguaro) distributed the offense, tallying 40 assists on the match.
Four Blue Angels recorded double-digit digs, led by junior Jacklyn Mozdzen's (Wautoma, Wis./Wautoma) match-high 19. Freshman Ava Ramos (San Antonio, Texas/Marshall) added 14 while Ecker and freshman Ahlyna Cason (Smithton, Mo.) added 11 apiece.
Ripon 3, MMU 2
After dropping the first two sets, the Blue Angels put together an impressive rally to tie the match at two sets apiece. However, a long service run and blistering .667 hitting by the Red Hawks in the tiebreaker eventually sealed MMU's fate.
Statistically, Ecker picked up her third double-double of the season with a team-high 12 kills and 11 digs. Ramos tallied a team-high 15 digs while White dished out another 34 assists. Carufel and freshman Morgan Vander Kooy (Fond du Lac, Wis./St. Mary's Springs) added 10 and eight kills from the middle, respectively. Vander Kooy recorded a career-best six blocks.
The Blue Angels are back at it for day two of the Blue Angel Bash Saturday, hosting North Central (Minn.) and Lawrence to close out a busy weekend.
