BANNER

Alana Lewis recorded her 500th career dig as the Badgers drop Saturday's doubleheader in straight sets to Salem State.

SUMMARY

On Saturday afternoon, Johnson had Salem State's back against the wall through the duration of the doubleheader, despite the day's final scoreline. Though each match concluded 3–0, they held especially strong sets from Johnson that could have fallen in either direction.

After dropping the opening match's first set 25–13, Johnson displayed their maturity in returning for the second, a true back-and-forth battle. Though Salem again jumped out to a 4–0 lead, the Badgers responded with kills from Sepphyre Lepega-Telona, Haylee Hansen, and a service ace from Tatum Kalahiki. A mid-set rally saw Johnson cut the deficit to 14–11 after a kill from Ludlow and a block from Sierra Reed. Following a Salem timeout, Johnson surged ahead with a 5-point run, tying the set at 22–22 thanks to a series of Salem errors and a Hansen kill. Hansen added another kill to give Johnson a 24–22 lead, but Salem responded with four straight points to steal the set 26–24.

In the would-be final set, Salem again jumped ahead early, but Johnson kept pace with kills from Hansen, Kalahiki, and Ludlow. A late rally saw the Badgers cut the deficit to 24–22 after a service ace from Reed and a kill from Lepega-Telona. However, a final Salem point ended the match 25–22.

Returning to the court for the second match of the day, Delaney Gross capitalized on a Salem error to give the Badgers an early lead. However, a string of attack errors and service aces allowed Salem to build momentum. Despite kills from Max Ludlow and Haylee Hansen, Salem closed the set 25–14..

Johnson jumped out to a second set 9–4 lead after a Salem St. timeout, fueled by kills from Lepega-Telona, Hansen, and a service ace from Ludlow. Salem responded with a three-point run to tie the set at 13–13. Johnson rallied again, tying the set at 24–24 with a clutch kill from Ludlow, but Salem sealed the set 26–24 with back-to-back kills.

In the third and final set, Salem took an early lead, but Johnson paced their way back with kills from Ludlow, Hansen, and Kalahiki. A late rally saw the Badgers cut the deficit to from 24-18 to 24–22 after a service ace from Sierra Reed and a kill from Lepega-Telona that held off four straight match points. However, a final Salem rally would ultimately end the match 25–22, in Salem's favor.

KEY STATS – GAME ONE

• Haylee Hansen: 6 kills, 7 digs, 1 solo block
• Max Ludlow: 5 kills, 12 digs, 1 ace
• Alana Lewis: 15 digs, 2 aces
• Tatum Kalahiki: 1 kill, 3 aces, 7 digs
• Delaney Gross: 11 assists

KEY STATS – GAME TWO

• Max Ludlow: 10 kills, 8 digs, 11 points
• Haylee Hansen: 6 kills, 13 digs
• Sepphyre Lepega-Telona: 4 kills
• Delaney Gross: 16 assists
• Alana Lewis: 10 digs
• Team Digs: 51

UP NEXT

The Badgers return to the court on the road against Castleton on Wednesday, September 24th for a 6 pm and 8 pm doubleheader.