Yellow Jacket volleyball fought valiantly in their two losses on Saturday, which included a 3-1 loss to MSU-Mankato and a tightly contested 3-2 loss to the No. 16 ranked Hillsdale College.
 
Game One (L, 3-1)
Madison Hoopman would lead the attack with 12 kills and 5 digs.
Kindra Cerrone would follow close behind with 11 kills, 7 digs and 2 service aces.
Karly Marx would tack on a service ace, 13 digs and 34 assists.
 
Set One (L, 25-18): Hoopman would put the Yellow Jackets ahead with three consecutive kills, but the MSU Mavericks would climb their way to a 9-5 not long after. The Yellow Jacket offense would struggle to catch up with the Mavericks, not closing in until later in the game. The Yellow Jackets gain some momentum, bringing the game to 21-18 after another Hoopman kill and an attack error on the Mavericks, forcing a timeout from MSU-Mankato. The Yellow Jackets would continue to fight, but the Mavericks would hold the Yellow Jackets scoreless for the rest of the game, taking set one 25-18.
 
Set Two (L, 25-18): MSU-Mankato would dominate out of the start of set two, taking an early 6-0 lead before Cerrone would put up the first point on the board for the Yellow Jackets. Black Hills State got hot on offense and scored three in a row off more Cerrone offensive plays and forced errors on MSU-Mankato, leading to an 11-9 gap and a forced Maverick timeout. The Yellow Jackets would come out of the break and tie the game at 11-11, with the two teams trading blows for the next few services. The Mavericks, however, would begin to slowly pull away from the Yellow Jackets and result in a hard-fought set two loss.
 
Set Three (W, 25-18): The Yellow Jackets and the Mavericks would begin the set neck-and-neck, with Black Hills State taking their first lead of the day on a serving ace from Audrey Brgoch to bring the score to 6-4. Scores from an Abigail Renner kill and a Cerrone ace would extend the Yellow Jacket lead to 8-5. MSU, following a timeout, would charge out of the break and tie the game back up 9-9. Although the Mavericks would continue to go point-for-point with Black Hills State, the Yellow Jackets would not let them take the advantage, continuing to match with MSU and hold them at an arms-length. MSU would take another timeout at a 19-15 Yellow Jacket lead, and the Yellow Jacket ladies would continue to keep them at bay and take a 25-18 set three win.
 
Set Four (L, 25-12): The Yellow Jackets would take a 2-1 lead off two errors on the Mavericks to start set four. MSU would later climb back to their first lead since set two at 5-4, notching another three scores to force Black Hills State into a timeout. The Yellow Jackets would struggle to gain momentum on offense as MSU would extend their lead to 17-9. Black Hills State would not be able to bridge the gap and lose set four 25-12, dropping game one to the Mavericks 3-1.
 
Game Two (L, 3-2)
Madison Hoopman would once again lead the charge at 13 kills and 3 digs.
Kindra Cerrone was right behind with 12 kills, 1 block, 11 digs and a service ace.
Mariah Robinson would post 11 kills and 2 blocks
Brooke Franklin (2), Audrey Brgoch, and Hannah Lamon would each tack on at least one serving ace throughout the match.
 
Set One (L, 25-16): Hillsdale College would jump to an early 7-3 lead to start the game. A Brooke Franklin service ace would help the Yellow Jackets get within range of a comeback at 7-5, but Hillsdale would climb their way to an 11-5 lead. Despite a hard effort from the Yellow Jackets, who would score two kills from Cerrone and Hoopman followed by a Charger error, Hillsdale would hold their ground and take set one.
 
Set Two (W, 25-21): Set number two would start on more even legging as both teams would be exchanging scores, with Black Hills State staying above water in the ordeal. The Yellow Jackets would jump to a 6-3 lead off two Cerrone kills. Hillsdale continued to keep the Yellow Jackets on their heels but consistent scoring from Hoopman and Cerrone and forced errors on Hillsdale would keep the Yellow Jackets ahead. Following a forced Hillsdale timeout, Black Hills State led 11-5 before the Chargers would slowly climb their way to a 3-score gap. An Abigail Renner kill and bad Charger set would force Hillsdale into another timeout. The Yellow Jackets would hang on to turn this game into a tied 1-1 contest with a final set two score of 25-21.
 
Set Three (W, 25-13): Hillsdale would initially hold a lead at 4-2, but the Yellow Jackets were quick to turn it back into a 5-5 battle. Hillsdale would go back ahead and the game would continue in exchanged scoring between both teams. Black Hills State would edge out in front once again at 8-7 after a forced error from Audrey Brgoch, followed by a Hillsdale timeout. Two Robinson kills and a Brgoch service ace out of the timeout would extend the Yellow Jacket lead to 11-7. Hillsdale would continue to struggle against a tough Yellow Jacket defense, allowing Black Hills State to pull away. Robinson would tack on the three remaining points and the Yellow Jackets would go on to dominate the Chargers in set three, taking a 2-1 lead going into set four.
 
Set Four (L, 25-10): After starting the fourth set with two lead changes between the Chargers and Yellow Jackets, Hillsdale would begin to create separation over the course of the early part of the set, taking a 10-5 at the first Yellow Jacket timeout. Hillsdale would continue to expand their lead following the break, expanding to 15-7. The Yellow Jackets would lose momentum and fell short in set four, taking the No. 16 Chargers into a fifth set.
 
Set Five (L, 15-12): After beginning to fall short at a 4-2 deficit in the beginning of the match, the Yellow Jackets would score two off a Hillsdale attack error and a Robinson kill, leading to a tie at 6-6. The Chargers would continue to stay strong offensively, forcing Black Hills State into a timeout after a 10-7 score on a Yellow Jacket error. The Yellow Jackets would continue to fight for the upset against the Chargers, but would fall just short at a final score of 15-12.
 
Up Next: The Yellow Jackets head to Fairbanks, Alaska on Sept. 1 for the Denali State Bank Ice Block Classic, hosted by the University of Alaska Fairbanks. Their first match-up will be with the host school, slated for a 9:30 p.m. MT start.