Duluth, Minn. – The No. 5 Northern State University volleyball team dropped a 5-set heartbreaker to No. 9 Southwest Minnesota State in the semifinal round of the NSIC Tournament Friday evening. The Wolves battled back, after going down two sets to none, winning the third and fourth sets 25-23 and 28-26. The ultimately fell 15-9 in decisive game, dropping to 26-4 on the year.
 
The Wolves recorded 61 kills, 59 assists, ten blocks, and three aces, as well as a match high 88 digs in the match. The Northern offense hit .172, notching a match high 19 kills in the fourth set. The Mustangs hit .255, notching 74 kills on 200 swings, with 23 attack errors.
 
Hailey Busch led four Wolves in double figures with 16 kills, while also recording 16 digs for her 14^th double-double of the season. Morgan Baufield followed with 14 kills of her own, hitting a team second best .273.
 
Jenna Reiff and Laura Snyder each recorded ten kills, with Reiff leading the team hitting .292. Regan Dennis and Sally Gaul rounded out the hitter with five and three kills respectively. Ashley Rozell notched two kills of her own, and dished out 54 total assists, averaging 10.80 per set.
 
Jaiden Langlie led the Northern State defense with 25 digs, averaging 5.00 per set, followed by Lexi Boesl with 19. Rozell and Alyssa Deobler each tallied right digs, while Baufield notched four and Dennis and Bry Goar recorded three each.
 
Baufield played strong defense at the net with a game high seven blocks. Snyder was close behind with five of her own, while Reiff tallied three and Rozell and Gaul each recorded two. Baufield, Langlie, and Goar recorded the three team service aces for NSU as well.
 
Northern will await their season fate per the NCAA Selection Show set for Sunday evening. The show will air at 9 p.m. (CT) on NCAA.com. NSU was ranked fifth in the last Central Region poll. The top-8 teams advance with the tournament winners from the NSIC, MIAA, and GAC receiving an automatic bid.