FINDLAY, Ohio -- The Wayne State University volleyball team (2-4 record) was back on the road Friday for day one of the Findlay Classic.  However, the Warriors dropped a pair of four-set affairs against Indiana University of Pennsylvania (IUP) and Hillsdale.

FROM COACH KOTH
"Although the outcome of today's matches is not what we hoped for, I thought we learned a lot about ourselves and what it takes to be elite.  Our hope is that the team absorbs this information and gets better because of it."

MATCH ONE vs. IUP (L, 1-3)
HOW IT HAPPENED
- Wayne State got just the start it wanted, hitting .333 with 15 kills and only four errors on 33 total attacks to win the first set, 25-17.
- In the second period, the Warriors led the Crimson Hawks by seven, 18-11, before IUP rattled off 14 of the next 19 points to take the stanza, 25-23.
- IUP came out with a vengeance in the third scoring 14 of the first 18 points.
- From there until the end of the set, WSU couldn't get closer than three, 24-21, but IUP tallied the next point to seal it, 25-21.
- In the fourth, aside from the Crimson Hawks scoring the first point and there being four ties, the Warriors held the advantage until that fourth deadlock at 22-22.
- It was then a back-and-forth affair to 25-25 before IUP scored the next to points for the set, 27-25, and the match.

LEADING THE WARRIORS
- Molly Miller (Oxford, Mich.) broke out for 24 kills and just nine errors on 44 swings for a .341 hitting percentage.
- That 24-kill total is one more than her previous career high, which she set as a freshman at Madonna on Nov. 12, 2021 against Siena Heights.
- Miller also earned her third double-double of the fall thanks to 10 digs in this match.
- Kayla Giroux (Flat Rock, Mich.) also reached double-figures for kills with 14 while hitting .500.
- Also on the attack, Kayla Dulgar (Warsaw, Ohio / River View) racked up 48 assists and sent home four service aces.
- As a team, Wayne State accounted for 13 aces, which is tied for the program's most since Sept. 7, 2019 against New Haven (15).
- The Warriors also had 13 on Oct. 16, 2021 against Ohio Dominican.
- Defensively, Kendyl Andrews (Flushing, Mich.) was on top of the dig category with 22 while four different Warriors had a block assist.

ONE BIG THING
- Wayne State led by seven points in both the second and fourth sets.

MATCH TWO vs. HILLSDALE (L, 1-3)
HOW IT HAPPENED
- Wayne State again won the first set, this time by two points, and hit .324 (15 kills, 4 errors, 34 total attacks) in the process.
- Besides four ties in the second set (1-1, 3-3, 4-4. 5-5), Hillsdale had the lead, including being up by eight at 22-14.
- The first 22 total points of the third period saw three ties (7-7, 8-8, 11-11) before the Chargers ended the run with a 14-3 spurt.
- HC then scored 13 of the fourth set's first 16 points, but WSU utilized a 10-2 run late to knot it up at 23-23.
- Hillsdale then scored the next two points to take the set and the match.

LEADING THE WARRIORS
- Miller and Giroux were the top attackers again, this time with 17 kills and 13 kills, respectively.
- Giroux did so while hitting .385 and her attacking percentage sits at .463 heading into matches seven and eight of the season.
- Dulgar dished out 41 assists and marked up two aces as well.
- On the other side of the ball, Dulgar dug out 11 attack attempts for her second double-double of the fall.
- Also on defense, Andrews had 14 digs while Alexa Withun (Troy, Mich. / Athens) and Giroux each assisted on three blocks.

ONE BIG THING
- Hillsdale had 15 service aces to Wayne State's six.

UP NEXT
Wayne State will stay in Findlay to face Cedarville (1 p.m.) and the host Oilers (5 p.m.) on Saturday.