Box Score
Lourdes rallied to force a fifth set against ninth-ranked Cardinal Stritch on Saturday night, but in the end it was the Wolves that pulled out the victory, 25-18, 20-25, 25-21, 15-25, 15-10 over the Gray Wolves at Tam-o-Shanter.
 
In a match-up that featured the only two unbeaten teams in the Great Lakes Conference entering the match, Lourdes outhit Cardinal Stritch .160-.140, outblocked the Wolves 16-12, and registered nine aces to the visitors three.
 
However, in the decisive fifth set it was Cardinal Stritch that hit .333 with just two errors to a .056 hitting percentage for the Gray Wolves.
 
Cardinal Stritch led the entire way in the opening set, building a 10-5 lead early.  The Wolves never let Lourdes battle back, leading by at least three points the rest of the way in taking the lead in the match.  The Gray Wolves committed four service errors in the opening set as well as nine attack errors, hitting just .100 for the stanza.
 
In set two it was Lourdes that never trailed throughout.  The Gray Wolves took an early 9-4 lead only for the Wolves to answer with six of the next seven points to tie the set at 10.  With the set tied at 16, Lourdes went on a mini run, taking advantage of several Cardinal Stritch miscues to forge a 22-18 lead and the Gray Wolves held on to even the match.
 
Lourdes led set three most of the way until a late Cardinal Stritch run allowed the guest to grab the set.  Lourdes led by as many as four, 14-10, and still had a 20-19 lead before the Wolves ran off five of the final six points to take a two sets to one lead in the match.
 
Set four saw Lourdes trail 12-11 before CJ Rilveria (Kula, Hawaii, Kekaulike H.S.) went on a run at the service line, helping the Gray Wolves score 11 unanswered points.  Lourdes defense limited Cardinal Stritch to -.031 hitting in the set, and forced a decisive fifth frame.
 
The Gray Wolves struck for the first two points of the fifth set before Cardinal Stritch answered with five in a row to take the lead for good.  The advantage grew to six, 10-4, for the Wolves before Lourdes tried to battle back.  The hosts pulled to within three, 13-10, before a service error and a block ended the match.
 
Frank Craig (Jacksonville, Fla./Englewood H.S.) led the way for Lourdes, tallying a match-high 20 kills while hitting .298.  He was in on eight blocks for the Gray Wolves.  Julian Rivera (Bayamon, P.R./Wesleyan Academy) added 11 kills while Chris Lockwood (San Diego, Calif./Poway H.S.) tallied nine kills, hit a team-leading .304, and also had eight blocks.
 
Brad Miller (Convoy, Ohio/Crestview H.S.) led Lourdes with 14 digs while Ryan Ferkel (Kimberly, Wis./Kimberly H.S.) came off of the bench to register a double-double, handing out 32 assists and adding 11 digs over the final four sets.
 
Noah Mader led Cardinal Stritch (4-5, 3-0 GLC) with 13 kills while Patrick Ronan tallied 18 digs.
 
Lourdes (5-2, 3-1) will wrap up its four-match homestand on Friday evening as the Gray Wolves entertain Saint Xavier.  First serve is set for 7 p.m. at Tam-o-Shanter.