MILWAUKEE, Wis. (WLCSports.com) – Wisconsin Lutheran College dropped its first home match in over a month on Thursday, falling 3-1 (25-21, 22-25, 14-25, 19-25) to Lakeland in a Northern Athletics Collegiate Conference contest at Time of Grace Center. Despite the setback, the Warriors clinched their first NACC Tournament berth since 2020 based on other conference results this week.
WLC (11-13, 7-3 NACC) opened strong with a .448 hitting percentage in the opening set to win 25-21, highlighted by six kills from senior
Lydia Biggin (Burlington, Wis.) and five from senior
Kayla Wigley (Milwaukee, Wis.). A mid-set service run from Biggin helped Wisconsin Lutheran pull away from an 11-11 tie to lead 19-12 before closing out the frame.
The Muskies (13-13, 7-3 NACC) responded in the second set with a 25-22 victory, using an 11-4 stretch to erase an early Warriors lead. WLC was limited to a .049 hitting percentage in the frame, while LU evened the match behind four kills from Maleigha Kovalaske.
The visitors seized momentum in the third set, hitting .308 and using a decisive 15-2 run to win 25-14. Wisconsin Lutheran managed just a .026 attack percentage in the set.
In the fourth, the Warriors built an early 7-4 lead before Lakeland rallied behind the offense of Kovalaske and Samya Hughes to close the match 25-19. The Muskies hit .250 in the set, while WLC finished at .156.
Wigley paced Wisconsin Lutheran with a match-high 16 kills and hit .316, while Biggin added 15 kills. Freshman
Lauren Charbonneau (Menomonee Falls, Wis.) registered a match-best 40 assists, and freshman
Brooke Bartelt (West Bend, Wis.) led all players with 15 digs.
Kovalaske led LU with 15 kills on a .312 hitting clip, followed by Hughes with 14 kills, while Sydney Gay had 39 assists. Ryan Figi totaled a team-high 14 digs for Lakeland.
The Warriors host Concordia Wisconsin (11-12, 7-3 NACC) on Saturday at 12 p.m. for First Responders Appreciation Day. Live coverage links can be found at WLCSports.com.
