“Unexpected but fabulous,” said senior Kaari Nevanen when describing the Michigan Tech volleyball team’s 2009 season. The team compiled a 10-6 GLIAC record and a 14-15 overall record, that earned them a spot in the GLIAC Tournament and a shot at the NCAA Championship, when they were selected as one of 64 teams to compete in the NCAA Tournament. Said Nevanen, “I don’t think people expected us to do well,” but as Veronica Armstrong put it, “externally, we knew that the support wasn’t there, but internally, we knew it was there.” The Huskies came off of a competitive 2008 season that saw a 12-4 GLIAC and 19-11 overall record. The team also lost the “twin towers,” Jen and Christa Jung, in addition to both front and back row talents like Kelly Jorgensen, Kelsey Skoog, and Ashley Nyenhuis.

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After a first-round exit from the GLIAC tournament, few people gave the Huskies a chance at even making it to the NCAA tournament. Despite their 14-14 overall record, Michigan Tech did make the tournament after all, locking up the No. 8 seed in the Midwest Regional. Unfortunately, they had to face the No. 1 tournament host, the Indianapolis Greyhounds. While Michigan Tech kept each set of Thursday night’s match close, the Greyhounds improved upon their 35-1 record with a 3-0 victory over Michigan Tech, 25-20, 25-19, 25-20.

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The Michigan Tech volleyball team (14-14) was one of 64 teams selected to the NCAA Tournament, despite falling 3-1 in the first round of the GLIAC Conference Tournament match against Saginaw Valley State University last Wednesday, Nov. 10.
Michigan Tech was led by two double-double performances from Kristine Sexton (15 kills and 10 digs) and Madeline Haben (33 assists and 16 digs) in their away match with the Cardinals. Senior Kaari Nevanen matched Haben’s 16 digs, and together the two women combined for half of the team’s passes. Digging efforts alone were not enough to overcome poor hitting accuracy. The Huskies hit 21 percent in game one to take the set 25-22, before their tenacity cooled.
Game two proved close with the teams tied at 24, but Saginaw Valley was able to close it out, thanks to a kill from their Kait Harris, and a stray Husky kill. While Michigan Tech continued to struggle in games three and four, the Cardinals hit their stride, defeating the Huskies 25-14 in each game to take the set 3-1.
“We went into [Saginaw], and we executed well early. And I think we were surprised at how easy it was,” said head coach Orlando Gonzalez. “We lost our focus and didn’t really have the killer instinct to put the team away. I think we’ve got to finally believe that we belong to play at this level.”
The Huskies earned the last spot in the Midwest Regional of the NCAA Tournament. Seeded eighth, Michigan Tech will play No. 1-seeded University of Indianapolis.
“We’ve just got to play more consistently,” said Gonzalez. “We’ve got to play better defense. They’re a very tough defensive team. We’ve got to be able to match their team.”
Coming off of a Great Lakes Valley Conference Championships (GLVC), the 35-1 Greyhounds will be hosting their first ever Regional Tournament. Ranked ninth in the nation, they are led by freshman Kristina Kerrigan and junior Lyndsay Callahan who average 2.97 and 2.68 kills per game. Sophomore Kristina Hefferan is also over two with 2.28 kills per game. Four other greyhounds are above a 1.5 kill per game average each. Junior Cheneta Morrison takes care of setting responsibilities with 10.57 per set, while lone senior Kyleigh Turner (4.8), Callahan (3.02) and Morrison (2.5) split digging duties.
As a team, they average 14.1 kills, 13.1 sets and 16.2 digs per set. Jody Butera leads the Greyhounds in her thirteenth year as head coach with a winning reputation and a 65 percent success rate.
Overall, there are eight regionals for a total of 64 teams. Gonzalez hopes the team can win at least two games to advance to the Sweet Sixteen and the Regional Championship.
“I think we’ve got a blocking advantage, so we’ve got to utilize that,” said Gonzalez. “Most importantly, we need to side out evenly with them. Some of the advantages we have in size and athleticism will help us.”
Michigan Tech and the University of Indianapolis will serve it up in Indianapolis, Ind., at 7:30 p.m. this Thursday, Nov. 19.

Even after losing 3-1 to Saginaw Valley State in the first round of the GLIAC tournament and earning a 14-14 overall record, Michigan Tech will make its second straight NCAA Division II volleyball tournament appearance. Since their overall record is the worst among the 64-team tournament field – only three of the 319 tournament teams in the past five years have entered with a .500 overall record or worse – Michigan Tech’s 10-6 conference record is likely what earned the Huskies their invite.

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With a 3-0 victory over Saginaw Valley State on Sept. 12, and a 3-1 loss to the Cardinals on Halloween, Wednesday’s GLIAC quarterfinal between the Huskies (14-14, 10-6 GLIAC) and Cardinals (20-8, 12-4 GLIAC) was sure to be a battle.

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Grand Valley State University came out a game ahead of the Michigan Tech volleyball team in regular season volleyball, taking the tie breaker in a 3-0 match Saturday afternoon.

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Michigan Tech volleyball got off to a slow start in Big Rapids, Mich., Friday night, but they were able to continue building on their game and come out on top of the hosting Ferris State University Bulldogs in a 3-2 match.

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Michigan Tech volleyball overcame Upper Peninsula rival Northern Michigan on senior night in a five set Halloween match up. Seniors Veronica Armstrong, Kaari Nevanen, Allison Greene, Lyndsey Dixon and Melissa Axtell were greeted by their parents and honored by their home crowd prior to Madeline Haben’s serve, which resulted in a Michigan Tech point to set the tone for the first set.
Haben recorded a double double 53 assists and 12 digs, which helped players like Armstrong (12 kills) and Kristine Sexton (17 kills) to pound down important kills at key points in the games. The Huskies grabbed game one 25-14, thanks to 46.7 percent hitting accuracy.  The Wildcats responded in games two and three with a pair of wins, 25-19 and 25-23, taking advantage of the scrambling Husky defense.
While Northern Michigan played consistently, their efforts began to cool off. In games four and five, their hitting dropped to 14 percent in the fourth and lower yet in the fifth with only four successful kills and six errors on 17 attempts.  The Wildcats found themselves down by six points thanks to hitting and digging error, before they were able to respond. Riding a wave of energy from their home crowd and a small contingent of pep band members, Michigan Tech closed out set five and the match, 15-7.
Haben was “very happy with how the game went.” The team has struggled to finish off their opponents and focus in on their play specifically throughout the season. Haben hopes that the team will continue the team’s winning mentality when they head out on the road this weekend to play Ferris State and Grand Valley State Universities.
The Huskies suffered a 1-3 loss to the Bulldogs (9-5) in mid-September before rebounding the following day to steal a win over Grand Valley State (10-4) in a close five game match, 15-13. As Haben expressed, finishing will be key.
Michigan Tech improves to 9-5 in conference and 13-12 overall. They will play in Big Rapids, Mich., against Ferris State, Friday, at 12 p.m. For more information, visit mtulode.com.

Celebrating senior night in their last home meet of the season, the Michigan Tech women’s volleyball team defeated visiting rival Northern Michigan University in a tight 3-2 match.

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Michigan Tech maintained a .500 overall record after defeating visiting Lake Superior State University in four sets and falling to Saginaw Valley State University, 3-1.

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