Lourdes wrapped up the road portion of the 2017 regular season on Saturday afternoon, suffering an 18-25, 25-21, 28-26, 25-22 setback to Aquinas inside of the Sturrus Sports & Fitness Center in Grand Rapids, Mich.
 
"We struggled to find a rhythm following the first set," head coach Greg Reitz said after the match.  "Our offense couldn't get back to the form we had to start the match.  Aquinas played well today and we did not."
 
Neither team led by more than two points for the first half of the opening set until Lourdes scored four straight points to take a 17-14 lead.  The Saints pulled to within one, 19-18, but the Gray Wolves ended the stanza with the final six points, including three kills by Tylar Roberson (Elkhart, Ind./Central H.S.).  Lourdes hit .424 in the first with 15 kills and just one error.
 
Lourdes looked to take a 2-0 lead late in the second set, leading 21-20, but Aquinas rallied, taking advantage of four attack errors by the Gray Wolves down the stretch, three via blocks, to even the match.  The Saints hit .367 in the second stanza with just two errors, while Lourdes made 10 miscues.
 
Lourdes built a 21-15 lead in the third set before Aquinas scored seven straight points to pull in front.  The Gray Wolves had one set point, and fought off three others by the Saints before the hosts earned the win following back-to-back errors by Lourdes.
 
The Gray Wolves took an 11-6 lead early in the fourth, but again the Saints rallied.  A 9-2 run put Aquinas in front for good.  Lourdes fought back to tie the set at 21, but was never able to forge in front the rest of the way.
 
Roberson led Lourdes with 19 kills and 14 digs while Kristin Murrell (Toledo, Ohio/Central Catholic H.S.) also had a double-double with 12 kills and a match-high 21 digs.  Emily Arnold (Sylvania, Ohio/Southview H.S.) tallied 21 kills while hitting a team-high .435 for the match.
 
Jami Markus (Oregon, Ohio/Central Catholic H.S.) handed out 45 assists and had 10 digs defensively for the Gray Wolves while registering three of the team's nine service aces.  Angelica Dippold (Louisville, Ky./Mercy Academy) added 17 digs.
 
Kylie Christensen led Aquinas (17-12, 8-6 WHAC) with 19 kills and five blocks while hitting .400 offensively.  Marisa Spetoskey added 21 digs to pace the Saints.
 
Lourdes (18-10, 9-5) will look to snap its three-match losing skid on Wednesday evening, as the Gray Wolves close the regular season hosting Rochester (Mich.).  First serve is set for 7 p.m. inside the Russell J. Ebeid Recreation Center, with Senior Night activities taking place prior to the match.