The third-ranked University of Minnesota Duluth took the court early Friday morning for a match-up with No. 6-ranked Colorado School of Mines at the UIndy Tournament hosted by the University of Indianapolis.

For the third time already in 2015, No. 3 UMD (5-1) matched up against a top-10 team in the American Volleyball Coaches Association (AVCA) Division II Top 25, knocking off No. 6 Mines (4-1) in straight sets: 25-14, 25-19, 25-20. The Bulldogs return to the court later Friday, picking up a four-set win over Ashland (Ohio) University: 27-25, 22-25, 25-17,, 25-23.

The Bulldogs broke out early in the first set against Colorado Mines, dropping the first point before jumping out to a 12-4 lead, forcing Orediggers head coach Jamie Skadeland to call a timeout. The teams traded points until UMD led 17-10 causing Bulldog head man Jim Boos took his first break. UMD would drop the next two points but then open a run, driving to a 25-14 first-set victory. Senior middle blocker Monica Turner had four kills and a solo block in the first set while junior middle Sydnie Mauch had four blocks and three kills in the first set. UMD hit .550 as a squad in the opening frame, holding CSM to a .000 hitting percentage with 10 errors to match 10 kills against the Bulldogs' defense.

Sophomore Kelly Madison got the start at the libero position, collecting 15 digs for UMD, including four in a second set that saw Mines jump out to an early 5-2 lead before the Bulldogs rally back, eventually gaining the edge at 7-6. Madison didn't need many digs in the second set as UMD remained strong at the net throughout the match dropping back 14.0 total blocks. The Bulldogs would once again build up an impressive lead, up by as much as seven including at 24-17 but the Orediggers made it tough to hold them down as UMD took it by a 25-19 final.

The third set proved to be the toughest yet for UMD as Colorado Mines jumped out to a 6-0 start, forcing Coach Boos to take a timeout in the early-going to refocus his team. CSM would build it to 9-3 before the Bulldogs rallied once more, pulling within 9-8 before the Orediggers. Finally, UMD would knot the score at 12-all on a major kill by first-year middle blocker Sarah Kelly and take its first lead at 13-12 thanks to a Mines attack error. The Bulldogs would extend that lead eventually to two at 18-16, forcing another timeout for CSM.  UMD held strong from there, eventually edging out the Orediggers in straight sets, winning the third set by a 25-20 final in come-from-behind fashion.

Mauch led the way with 15 points on 11 kills and eight block assists, while Turner added 10 kills and three blocks. Senior outside hitter Mariah Scharf and junior Taylor Wissbroecker combined for 15 kills on the left side while Kelly totalled four in the match. Senior setter Ashley Hinsch collected 34 assists. On the other side, senior middle Megan Peterson had a team-high 10 kills for Colorado Mines, while senior outside Frannie Cormier had 25 assists. Junior libero Taryn Huber had nine digs to lead the Orediggers.

UMD 3, Ashland 1
The Bulldogs returned to the court late Friday, and got another big game from Mauch who collected 16 kills on the night to lead UMD past Ashland (Ohio) in four sets. After a back-and-forth first set, errors cost the Bulldogs in set two as the team hit just .065 in the set. Coach Boos lit a fire under his team between sets, as they came out and dominated the final two sets, including hitting .364 in the final frame.

Wissbroecker would add 13 kills in the second match of the day, missing a double-double by one while adding nine digs. Madison once again started at the libero position, grabbing 18 digs, establishing a career high. Hinsch had 47 assists, while Turner continued to be consistent adding 10 more kills on the day and tying with Kelly with four blocks in the match. A pair of players notched 14 kills for the Eagles - junior right-side hitter Rylee Scott and junior outside Alli Cudworth. Ashland got 41 assists from junior setter Mallory Slyder and 12 digs from freshman libero Kaitlyn Bean.

OUTSIDE HITS
UMD is now 1-0 all-time against Colorado Mines and 2-0 against Ashland ... Mauch's eight blocks against the Orediggers matched a career-high for the third time ... Wissbroecker set a new career mark with five blocks against Mines ... since knocking down five kills in the opening match, Turner has 10 or more kills in five straight matches for the Bulldogs.

UP NEXT
UMD will play a pair of matches Saturday at the UIndy Tournament, first facing the host Indianapolis and later a rematch against No. 10 Wheeling Jesuit University. First serve between the Bulldogs and Greyhounds is set for 11:15 a.m.