Box Score 1 | Box Score 2 Lourdes University closed out action at the Saint Xavier/Trinity Christian Crossover on Saturday, splitting a pair of matches at the Trinity Christian Athletics Complex in Palos Heights, Ill.  The Gray Wolves fell 25-19, 26-24, 25-20 in the morning against Saint Francis (Ill.) before rallying from two sets down in the afternoon to defeat Mount Mercy 20-25, 24-26, 25-20, 25-22, 15-10.
 
In the morning contest against Saint Francis, Lourdes hit just .028 as the Fighting Saints snapped the Gray Wolves' two-match winning streak.
 
"We didn't play with enough energy to win this morning's match," head coach Greg Reitz stated.  "We need to play more consistently against a steady opponent."
 
With the opening set tied at 13, Saint Francis went on a 5-2 run to take the lead for good.  The Saints committed just four errors in the first set while the Gray Wolves hit -.026.
 
Lourdes scored the first five points of the second set before a 7-1 run by Saint Francis put the Saints back on top.  The set went back and four with eight ties and three lead changes before Lourdes held a 23-21 edge.  The Saints rallied though, scoring five of the final six points, to take a 2-0 lead in the match.
 
The Gray Wolves again raced out to a 5-1 lead in the third set only to see the Saints respond yet again.  Seven straight points by Saint Francis pushed the Saints lead to 10-8.  Lourdes fought back to tie the set at 13, one of six ties down the stretch, before the Saints five of the final six points to secure the match.
 
Stephanie Richards (Perrysburg, Ohio/Perrysburg H.S.) led Lourdes with 12 kills and hit .458 while registering 11 digs.  No other Gray Wolves had more than four kills in the match though.  Michi Jimenez (Vega Baja, P.R./Juan Quirindongo Morrell H.S.) tallied a match-high 16 digs while Lexie Curtis (Toledo, Ohio/Bedford H.S.) handed out 25 assists while registering five service aces.
 
"We got a really solid performance by Stephanie, both offensively as well as defensively," Reitz added.  "We need others to step up to that level."
 
Shelby Kupferschmid led Saint Francis (3-3) with eight kills and 11 digs while Brooke Hartnell added 12 digs.
 
Against Mount Mercy, Lourdes again struggle offensively over the first two sets, hitting just .026 and -.041.  An early 7-3 run put the Mustangs on top for good in the opener while Lourdes held a 24-23 lead in set two only to see Mount Mercy take advantage of three straight attack errors by the Gray Wolves to build a 2-0 lead in the match.
 
Lourdes rebounded in the third, hitting .344, while leading from the opening point.  An early 10-4 lead gave the Gray Wolves a comfortable margin, allowing them to extend the match.
 
In the fourth, 11 ties and six lead changes kept the set tight throughout.  Lourdes led 23-22 when the Mustangs committed back-to-back errors, forcing the decisive set.
 
Tied at six in the fifth, Lauren Norman (Dublin, Ohio/Coffman H.S.) spearheaded a 7-0 run from the service line, highlighted by an ace and three kills from Richards.  Katie McKenty (Toledo, Ohio/Notre Dame H.S.) secured the victory with a kill.
 
Carolyn Manley (Holland, Ohio/Springfield H.S.) led the Gray Wolves with 12 kills while Stef Comte (Toledo, Ohio/Notre Dame H.S.) added 10 kills and eight blocks.  Jimenez tallied 24 digs in the win defensively.
 
"For us to battle back and secure a win when we weren't playing our best is big," Reitz said.  "It was a good ending to a 3-1 weekend.  It should give us something to build on for conference play on Wednesday."
 
Demi Heiss led Mount Mercy (3-3) with 16 kills while Cori Peterzalek added 10 kills and 20 digs for the Mustangs.
 
Lourdes (3-5) will open the home slate on Wednesday evening as the Gray Wolves host Marygrove.  First serve in the Wolverine-Hoosier Athletic Conference opener is set for 7 p.m. at Tam-o-Shanter.