MILWAUKEE, Wis. (WLCSports.com) – Wisconsin Lutheran College battled tightly across all three sets on Thursday, but ultimately fell 3-0 to unbeaten Northern Athletics Collegiate Conference foe Aurora at Time of Grace Center.

The Spartans (20-2, 6-0 NACC) maintained their spot atop the conference standings with a 26-24, 25-21, 25-20 sweep over the Warriors (9-11, 3-2 NACC).

The opening set set the tone for a competitive evening, featuring seven ties and four lead changes. AU held its largest lead of the set at 24-20, before WLC knotted the set score at 24-24 apiece. Aurora responded with the final two tallies, taking the frame 26-24.

Set two saw the Spartans break open a 15-14 lead with a 7-1 scoring run to surge ahead 22-15. Wisconsin Lutheran refused to go quietly, answering with a late 4-0 run to trim the deficit to 24-21 before AU closed out the 25-21 decision.

In the third set, both sides traded leads through 14 ties and six lead changes. After the Warriors tied the frame at 16-16, Aurora used a 3-0 spurt to gain an edge. WLC fought back within two points at 20-18, but the Spartans held off the rally, securing the match with a 25-20 victory.

Wisconsin Lutheran finished the match hitting .125 with 34 kills and 19 attack errors on 120 total attempts. Freshman Elizabeth Ehlke (Cedarburg, Wis.) paced the attack with seven kills, while junior Elexa Varden (Dixon, Ill.) and freshman Keiveana Petersons (Milwaukee, Wis.) added six kills apiece. Junior Veronica Tollakson (New Glarus, Wis.) dished out a team-high 16 assists, with sophomore Lauren Charbonneau (Menomonee Falls, Wis.) contributing 11. Tollakson also led the service game with three aces. Defensively, sophomore Brooke Bartelt (West Bend, Wis.) collected a match-high 25 digs.

AU hit .222 overall, tallying 42 kills against 16 errors on 117 swings. Katelyn Ruse led all players with a match-high 14 kills. Trinity Nelson orchestrated the offense with a match-best 31 assists. Payton Schaefer led Aurora with four service aces, Katie Brisk recorded a team-high 14 digs, and Peyton Darguzis registered two block assists.

The Warriors will look to bounce back on Saturday when they travel to Concordia Chicago (7-12, 3-2 NACC) for a 12 p.m. NACC matchup.