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BIG RAPIDS, Mich. – No. 20 Lewis women's volleyball saw their 2015 season come to an end on Friday (Dec. 4) evening. The Flyers dropped a 3-2 (27-29, 25-19, 25-19, 19-25, 15-11) NCAA Midwest Regional Semifinal contest to No. 7 Rockhurst. The match was played at Wink Arena on the campus of Ferris State University. Lewis was the No. 3 seed in the regional. Rockhurst was seeded No. 2.

It was the third time Rockhurst and Lewis played in 2015, all three matches went five sets. Rockhurst won in the regular season while Lewis won in the Great Lakes Valley Conference Tournament two weeks earlier. On Friday, Rockhurst pulled the tiebreaker.

The match opened with an epic first set featuring 17 ties and eight lead changes. Lewis denied three Rockhurst set points before earning one of their own at 27-26. Rockhurst denied that but the second set point was the charm as a Hawks' attack error went long for point 29. It gave the Flyers the set.  Junior Nicole Yuede (St. Charles, Mo./Francis Howell North) had 14 digs in the first set.

Lewis struggled in the next two sets, falling 25-19 in both frames. Lewis' only lead in either set came in the third at 1-0.

The GLVC Champion Flyers didn't rollover, taking the fourth set as they out-hit the Hawks .289 to .170 in the game.

The fifth set opened with a 3-0 run by Lewis, however the advantage was short lived. Rockhurst grabbed their first lead at 6-5. They eventually went up 9-5 as part of a 5-0 run. Lewis advanced within a point at 11-10, but couldn't complete the comeback.
 
"I think Rockhurst played a little cleaner than us," Lewis head coach Lorelee Smith said. "We had plenty of opportunities to win it in five but they were a little more consistent and a little cleaner."

Four Flyers finished with double-digit kills. Sophomore Aly Schneider (Granger, Ind./Penn) hit .385 with 19 kills. Freshman Elizabeth Hyland (Plainfield, Ill./Plainfield Central) added 17 kills and 15 digs. Senior Morgan Cebula (Stevens Point, Wis./Stevens Point Area) hit .500 with 13 kills and only one error. Senior Cassidy Parsons (Elkhart, Ind./Elkhart Memorial) hit .320 with 11 kills.

Defensively, Yuede recorded 33 digs while sophomore Maddie Seliga (St. Louis, Mo./Nerinx Hall) had 25 digs.

The Hawks out-hit the Flyers .266 to .199.

Rockhurst improves to 33-3. Lewis ends the season 31-5. Rockhurst will play host Ferris State on Saturday for the Midwest Regional Championship.