DETROIT - The Wayne State University volleyball team (3-4, 1-2 GLIAC) came out on the losing end of a tightly-contested 3-0 result against Ashland University (4-3, 1-2 GLIAC) on Saturday night at the Matthaei.

The Eagles, playing their third conference match in a 24-hour span, won by scores of 25-23, 26-24, and 25-22. Neither WSU nor Ashland led by more than five points during the match.

Leading Wayne State with a career-high 16 kills was Katarzyna Sak (Warren, Mich./Cousino), who also hit. 419 and contributed four blocks and a pair of service aces.

Nicole Arends (Ravenna, Mich.) finished with 10 kills and a team-best .444 hitting percentage, while Kristen Bulkiewicz (LaSalle, Ont./Sandwich) had six kills as well as nine digs.

Sak and Arends were a perfect 6-for-6 on attacks in the first set, which WSU led 15-10 and later 21-17 before a three-point AU run forced a Warrior timeout. Tied at 22-22, Ashland won the next two points to take its first lead of the set and closed it out 25-23.

The Eagles battled back from a four-point deficit late in the second set to tie it at 20-20. Trailing 24-21, Wayne State fought off three set points before Ashland came away with a 26-24 victory.

After the Warriors jumped out to a 4-0 lead in the third, no more than two points separated the teams until Ashland took a 23-20 lead. The Eagles nabbed two of the subsequent four points to finish the match.

Cydney Biessel (Ruby, Mich./Yale) totaled 36 assists, five digs and three blocks. Lindsey Graciak (Westland, Mich./Livonia Churchill) had a total of 12 digs, and Amanda Wetherill (Forest, Ohio/Riverdale) racked up five kills.

Wayne State will head to the state of Ohio next weekend for road conference matches against Tiffin on Saturday night and Ohio Dominican on Sunday afternoon.