Ripon, Wis. -- Maranatha came up short this weekend at the Ripon Redhawks Invitation, going 0-4. 

Arielle Henkel was the leading hitter for the Sabercats, finishing with a total of 40 kills throughout the four matches. Tessa Hinze had a decent weekend as well, finishing with a total of 19 kills. 

OVERVIEW

• Results:
  • Maranatha 0-3 Ripon (23-25, 14-25, 21-25)
  • Maranatha 0-3 Wisconsin Lutheran (19-25, 20-25, 19-25)
  • Maranatha 0-3 Nebraska Wesleyan (7-25, 13-25, 10-25)
  • Maranatha 0-3 Carroll (12-25, 13-25, 24-26)
• Venue: Doc Weiske Memorial Gymnasium, Ripon College 
• Location: Ripon, Wis.
• Event: Red Hawks Invitational
• Records: MBU (4-5), RC (6-4), WLC (5-7), NWU (5-5), CU (5-5)

STORY

DAY ONE - Maranatha knew, heading into the Redhawks Invitational, that their opponents would be tough. They started Friday afternoon off facing Ripon, a team they fell 1-3 to earlier this season. But at the start, it looked like things might have a different outcome as the Sabercats jumped out to a 6-0 lead. 

But the Redhawks climbed their way out of the hole and tied things up 22-22. After a Ripon timeout, all it took was a kill from Redhawks' Lydia Ellis and two Sabercats' errors for Ripon to come out on top. 

The energy on the court had shifted in favor of the Redhawks who kept attacking at a rate the Sabercats could not keep up with. Ripon pulled off two more wins to sweep Maranatha, finishing with 38 kills to the Sabercats' 25.

In the second match of the day, against Wisconsin Lutheran, Maranatha played three fairly consistent sets finishing with scores of 19, 20, and 19. Once again they simply could not outhit their opponents. But what hurt the most was the receiving errors. The Warriors racked up 14 serving aces against Maranatha, six of which came from Emma Incaprero.

DAY TWO - Today, Maranatha had to finish off the invitational by facing two teams they had not seen since 2006. Maranatha immediately struggled at the start of their first match against Nebraska Wesleyan. Finishing with only two kills compared to their opponents' 18, the Sabercats fell hard in set one 7-25. The rest of the match saw little change as Nebraska Wesleyan continued to hit the ball down Maranatha's throat, finishing with more than double the number of kills than the Sabercats. In the end, Maranatha was swept again. 

After falling twice more in their final match of the weekend against Carroll, by scores of 12-25 & 13-25, the Sabercats finally found a spark. Arielle Henkel and Tesse Hinze both put down eight kills apiece to help keep Maranatha in the fight for set three. But ultimately, the Sabercats fell 24-26 bringing an end to a long weekend.

MBU Starters:

• Day 1: 3-Johnson, 9-Hinze, 16- Nason, 17-Wright, 21-A. Henkel, 20- Malmanger, 22-Miller (Libero)
• Day 2: 3-Johnson, 9-Hinze, 13-Swaffer, 17-Wright, 21-A. Henkel, 20-Malmanger, 22-Miller (Libero)

STATS (four matches combined)

• MBU:
  • Day One (Two Matches Combined): 52 K, 46 A, 89 DIGS
  • Day Two (Two Matches Combined: 38 K, 36 A, 65 DIGS
• Last Time: Maranatha fell to Ripon 1-3 on September 8, 2023
• Last Time: Maranatha fell to Wisconsin Lutheran 2-3 on October 1, 2019
• Last Time: Maranatha fell to Nebraska Wesleyan 0-3 on September 9, 2006
• Last Time: Maranatha defeated Carroll 3-2 on September 15, 2006
• Series: Maranatha now trails the all-time series against Ripon 1-4
• Series: Maranatha leads the all-time series against Wisconsin Lutheran 38-24
• Series: Maranatha trails the all-time series against Nebraska Wesleyan 0-3
• Series: Maranatha now trails the all-time series against Carroll 2-4

OPPONENT

• Ripon competes regionally in the Midwest Conference (NCAA Dlll)
• Ripon finished the 2022 season with a 5-21 record
• Wisconsin Lutheran competes regionally in the Northern Athletics Collegiate Conference (NCAA Dlll)
• Wisconsin Lutheran finished the 2022 season with an 11-12 record
• Wisconsin Lutheran fell just short of qualifying for the NACC conference tournament
• Nebraska Wesleyan competes in the American Rivers Conference (NCAA Dlll)
• Nebraska Wesleyan finished the 2022 season with a 19-11 record
• Nebraska Wesleyan fell to Dubuque in the first round of the American Rivers Conference Tournament
• Carroll competes in the College Conference of Illinois & Wisconsin (NCAA Dlll)
• Carroll finished the 2022 season with a 15-14 record

NEXT

The Sabercats travel to Ankeny, Iowa for the Faith Classic, on Friday at 4:00 p.m. and 8:00 p.m. and Saturday at 11:00 a.m. and 3:00 p.m. Follow all the action at mbusabercats.com/schedule.