Lourdes took the opening two sets of Wednesday's Wolverine-Hoosier Athletic Conference quarterfinal only to see Indiana Tech rally over the final three stanzas to defeat the Gray Wolves 17-25, 22-25, 26-24, 26-24, 15-2 inside the Schaefer Center in Fort Wayne, Ind.
 
"We played well enough to be there at the end but we just couldn't close it out," head coach Greg Reitz said afterwards.  "It's just a frustrating way to end the season.  I'm proud of our effort against a team that played well all season long, but we just couldn't finish."
 
The sixth-seeded Gray Wolves started fast, scoring eight of the first nine points in the match.  The lead grew to as many as nine, 19-10, before Indiana Tech made a late push.  The Warriors closed to within five, 22-17, before Lourdes closed out the set.  Jolie Sobb (Toledo, Ohio/Maumee H.S.) had five kills on six swings while McKenna Hall (Sylvania, Ohio/Northview H.S.) also put down five balls as the Gray Wolves hit .250 in the opening stanza while adding four service aces.
 
Another quick start in set two had Lourdes in front early 7-2.  Indiana Tech clawed back, pulling to within two, 11-9, before the Gray Wolves pushed the lead back to six, 18-12.  The Warriors made one final push, using a 7-1 run to pull even at 19.  Lourdes stemmed tide though with the next two points to retake the lead for good, building a 2-0 lead in the match.  The Gray Wolf defense forced Indiana Tech into 11 attack errors in the frame as the Warriors hit .000 for the set. 
 
The third set was tight throughout with neither leading by more than two points until Lourdes extended the lead to three, 15-12.  A 9-3 run by the Warriors put the third-seeded in front 21-17.  The Gray Wolves answered with five consecutive points of their own to forge back in front, only to see Indiana Tech push back with the next three, giving them set point at 24-22.  Lourdes fought off a pair of set points to extend the set before the Warriors ultimately extended the match behind 17 kills in the frame.
 
Tied at 13 in set four, Lourdes went on an 8-1 run to build a 21-14 advantage.  The lead was still seven two points later before Indiana Tech scored the next five points to pull within two.  The Gray Wolves had three match points leading 24-21 before the Warriors scored the final five to force a deciding set.
 
Set five was all Indiana Tech (27-6).  The Warriors scored eight straight points to take a 9-1 lead and closed with the final six to complete the comeback.  Indiana Tech put down nine kills without an error in the final stanza, hitting .409.  Lourdes managed just one kills, swinging at a -.125 clip in the final set.
 
Hall led Lourdes (13-17) with 15 kills and 12 digs while Sobb finished with 13 kills and 13 digs as both registered double-doubles.  Abby Gentile (Blissfield, Mich./Blissfield H.S.) added 11 kills while Katey Stakolich (Parma, Ohio/Normandy H.S.) handed out 37 assists while directing the offense that hit .159 for the match.
 
Defensively, Alli Plasencio (Toledo, Ohio/Central Catholic H.S.) led the Gray Wolves with 25 digs.  She finished her career with 2,139 career digs, just four shy of the school's all-time mark.  Lydia Landoll (Monroeville, Ohio/Monroeville H.S.) and Cammy Smith (Mansfield, Ohio/Ontario H.S.) both were involved in four blocks each.
 
Noelle VanOort led Indiana Tech with 18 kills and 12 digs while Jacey Blust tallied 36 digs on defense.