DETROIT -- The Wayne State University volleyball team (1-1 overall) couldn't have asked for a better start to its 2026 campaign on Friday inside the Matthaei Center. The Warriors took care of business in their first match of the Warrior Invitational, 3-1 over Quincy, but came up short against Hillsdale in the nightcap, also in four sets.
"It was a good opening day against two very competitive programs," said head coach
Tim Koth. "We saw some growth and development from many of our players, and we look forward to tomorrow and learning about ourselves."
Match One - Wayne State 3, Quincy 1
HOW IT HAPPENED (20-25, 26-, 25-, 28-)
- Wayne State hit .189 for the match with 54 kills and 27 errors on 143 total attacks.
- Quincy countered with a .128 clip of its own, which included 42 kills and 24 mishaps on 141 swings.
- The Warriors were at their most efficient in the third at .333 (16-7-27).
- The Hawks opened the showdown at their best, including .308 (16-4-39).
-
Saige Martin racked up both a match and career-high 15 kills (.098 hitting percentage).
- The junior was one of four Warriors in double-figures in that department.
- The other three included
Lauren Essenpreis (11, .176),
Katerina Stout (11, .350) and
Katie Smith (10, .261).
- Fueling the attack was reigning All-American setter
Kayla Dulgar with 44 assists.
- Behind the service line, a trio in the Green and Gold sent home multiple aces.
- That trio included
Doga Muhtaroglu,
Giselle Burlingame and Dulgar, with three, two and two, respectively.
- Defensively, Burlingame (19) and Dulgar (13) surpassed the 10-dig plateau, while Dulgar churned out her 32nd double-double.
- Above the net, five Warriors tallied multiple blocks, the most impressive of which was Stout with eight (one solo).
- She was joined in that group by Martin with four (one solo), Muhtaroglu with four (one solo), Smith with four, and Dulgar with a pair.
LEADING THE WARRIORS
Match Two - Hillsdale 3, Wayne State 1
HOW IT HAPPENED (-27, 19-25, 23-25, 19-25)
- Wayne State hit .249 for the match with 69 kills and 27 errors on 169 total attacks.
- Hillsdale was more efficient at .361 with 56 kills and just eight mishaps on 133 attempts.
- The Warriors recorded a .421 hitting percentage in the third with 20 kills and four errors on 38 swings.
- The Chargers went without an attack error in that same set at .500 with 16-0-32.
- Leading the attack was
Katerina Stout with 20 kills (.455 hitting percentage), destroying her previous career high of 13.
- The other two Warriors with double-digit kills were
Saige Martin with a personal-best 19 (.265) and
Katie Smith with 15 (.333).
- For the senior Smith, 15 kills were just one shy of her previous career best set as a freshman.
- Running point for the offense was
Kayla Dulgar and her career high 63 assists.
- That assist output is the most by a Warrior since Kamryn Duffield's 71 back on Oct. 18, 2019 against William Jewell.
- Behind the service line, WSU managed just two aces, one apiece from
Lauren Essenpreis and
Doga Muhtaroglu.
- Defensively, four Warriors had 10 or more digs --
Giselle Burlingame (14), Martin (13), Essenpreis (12), and Dulgar (10).
- For Dulgar, that marked the senior captain's 33rd career double-double.
- Blocking wise, Martin finished with a pair (one solo) and so did Stout.
LEADING THE WARRIORS
UP NEXT
As part of day two of the Warrior Invitational on Saturday, Wayne Stat will play host to Northwood (1-1 overall) at 12:30 p.m. and IUP (1-1 overall) to round out the event at 5 p.m.
