LACEY, Wash. – The Yellowjackets lost a Great Northwest Athletic Conference road match to Saint Martin's Saturday at Marcus Pavilion 25-16, 25-19, 21-25, and 25-19.

After dropping the opening two sets, MSUB battled back to earn the third set and were close in the fourth set before a final surge from the Saints ended the match.
 
Senior libero Kylee Cornelio produced a season individual and team-high of 30 digs for the Yellowjackets. Cornelio holds the top-four totals in digs, all within four sets this year for MSUB with her next highest a 28 dig effort at Rocky Mountain College back on Sept. 12. Casey Rich posted her best effort in the defensive court this season with seven digs. The junior also recorded seven kills and a team-leading four block assists. Freshman Faith Taylor tallied 10 digs in the match, her fourth double-digit effort for MSUB this season.
 
The Yellowjackets were led on offense by 15 kills from Ashlynn Ward and 14 from Stormy Siemion. Ward added five digs and three blocks assists, while Siemion was just short of a double-double at nine digs with an assist and a block.
 
Lexa de Jesus landed eight kills on a team-best .368 attack percentage (8-1-19).
 
Freshman Angala Jensen posted her fourth match of 40 or more assists at 44, adding-in three digs and four kills.
 
The Saints finished with 72 kills on the night, led by a GNAC four set season-best 24 from Rachel Gondrezick. Rebecca Mitchell forced through 20 with Megan Vernoy adding 16. Nicholette Nesbitt tied the GNAC season-high in assists with 65. On defense, Cassidy Appo caught 28 digs for the Saints.
 
The Saints hit .357 72-12-168) in the match for the fourth-best GNAC performance this season. MSUB finished at .223 (57-20-166). The Yellowjackets led in blocks 6.0-4.0, and tied in service aces with three.
 
The win improves Saint Martin's to an even 6-6 overall record and 2-6 in the GNAC. MSU Billings falls to 2-15 and 1-7 in league play.
 
In the opening frame, the Saints drew out a 19-11 lead on a kill from Gondrezick. Points from de Jesus and Ward added to the scoreboard for MSUB. Lifting the Saints to the opening set win were kills by Vernoy and Nesbit.
 
In the second set, a kill from Rich pulled the 'Jackets to within one at 8-7. The Saints pushed away hard, doubling their lead to 16-8. A short 4-1 run by the Yellowjackets, including a pair of kills from Siemion, helped close the gap to 23-18. Rich added a kill out of the middle before Saint Martin's closed the door with a kill from Vernoy.
 
Bolstered by five kills from Ward and three blocks at the net, MSUB took the third frame 25-21. The 'Jackets led 11-3 and 20-10 before an 8-3 burst from Saint Martin's dropped the deficit to 23-18. Ward forced through a kill and MSUB weathered three more points from the Saints before earning the set on a block by de Jesus and Rich.
 
The fourth frame was a tight battle as both teams fought for momentum. MSUB middle blocker Bre Rodrigues tied the set at 16 with a short kill crosscourt. The Saints took the lead back rattling off four straight points. Siemion drew to within 22-18, but the Saints were able to close out the match adding three.
 
THE BUZZ: Cornelio named St Vincent Healthcare Athlete of the Match…the loss snaps a five match win streak against the Saints dating back to 2013…the Yellowjackets are now 6-4 on the road at Marcus Pavilion.
 
UP NEXT: MSU Billings returns home for five straight matches. The Yellowjackets host GNAC opponent Concordia (Ore.) during Alumni Night on Thursday, Oct. 13, at 7:00 p.m.