Lourdes saw its 2019 season come to a close on Friday evening, as the Gray Wolves suffered a 14-25, 25-23, 25-16, 25-23 setback to Madonna in the semifinals of the Wolverine-Hoosier Athletic Conference tournament inside the Ridler Field House in Southfield, Mich.
 
"We started out really well, but couldn't maintain that level of execution," head coach Greg Reitz said after the match.  "They started playing better and we couldn't match them.  I thought we came together, competed late, and gave ourselves a chance, but we didn't make the plays we needed to down the stretch."
 
Lourdes started hot offensively from the start, putting down kills on six of its first 10 swings to build an early 8-3 advantage.  With the Gray Wolves leading 12-6, Madonna scored five of the next six points to pull within two, 13-11.  With the lead still at two, 14-12, Michaela Eisenhauer (Castalia, Ohio/Margaretta H.S.) stepped to the service line, leading the terra cotta and black to seven straight points as the Gray Wolves pulled away to win set one.  The Lourdes offense hit .282 in the stanza with just three errors while the defense held Madonna to five kills and -.068 hitting.
 
The Gray Wolves started set two the same way, taking a quick 4-1 lead.  The lead grew to as many as five, and was still four, 19-15, before the Crusaders mounted a comeback.  A 9-3 Madonna run gave the Crusaders their first lead of the day, and they held on to even the match at one.  Madonna put down 13 kills in the stanza while Lourdes was forced into seven miscues and hit just .034.
 
Madonna carried its momentum into the third set, scoring the first four points.  Lourdes answered with three of its own, but that would be as close as the Gray Wolves would get in the frame.  A 15-6 run by the Crusaders pushed the advantage to double figures and Lourdes was unable to recover.  Madonna hit .438 in the set with 15 kills and just one error.
 
Lourdes, the tournament's seventh seed, looked poised to force a decisive set, building an early 10-4 lead in the fourth.  The advantage grew to 17-9 before the Crusaders mounted a valiant comeback.  An 8-2 Madonna run pulled the third seed to within two, before the two sided exchanged eight side outs.  The Gray Wolves led 23-20, but Madonna scored five straight points to close out the contest.
 
Emily Drenth (Darien, Ill./Hinsdale South H.S) led Lourdes with 14 kills and 10 digs while adding five blocks.  Kylee McBride (Peoria, Ariz./Mountain Ridge H.S.) and Allie Hale (Holland, Ohio/Springfield H.S.) both had double-doubles as well.  McBride tallied 10 kills and had 12 digs while Hale added 10 kills and 19 digs.  Alli Plasencio (Toledo, Ohio/Central Catholic H.S.) recorded 20 digs while Sarah Wisser (Schoolcraft, Mich./Schoolcraft H.S.) handed out 39 assists.
 
As a team, Lourdes hit .143 for the match and outdug the Crusaders 73-70.
 
Jodie Kelly led Madonna with 22 kills while Olivia Sweeney tallied a match-high 21 digs.
 
Madonna (24-11) advances to Saturday's championship match while Lourdes season ends with a 14-16 record.