SAN DIEGO - The Marist volleyball team (0-3) concluded its run of three matches in two days at the Aztec Invitational on Aug. 27. After falling to Denver in straight sets earlier in the day, the Red Foxes lost 3-0 to Michigan State.  

Denver 3, Marist 0 (25-22, 25-11, 25-14)

Junior Kelsey Ediger led Marist with five kills and eight digs in a three-set loss to the defending Summit League champion Denver Pioneers. Senior Lexi Millington put up a strong effort on both sides of the court, racking up eight digs and two assists. She was named to the All-Tournament Team. Two kills, 15 assists and six digs went to sophomore setter Taylor van der Biezen by the end of the match.

The Red Foxes climbed back into the opening stanza with the help of three straight kills from freshman Nikki DeSerpa, which put them ahead 7-6. Rallies varied as Denver tied the score five more times. The Pioneers then earned five straight points to propel them to the early advantage in the match. 

In the final set Marist fought its way to a 5-4 edge. A kill from freshman Megan Fergus made it 11-10 in favor of the Red Foxes, but Denver picked up 14 of the contest's final 18 points to secure its first win of the 2016 regular season.

Pioneers senior Nola Basey tallied six kills and 11 digs while junior Piyusha Boteju handed out 15 assists alongside nine digs.

Michigan State 3, Marist 0  (25-14, 25-20, 25-19)

Both sides were knotted at five early in the match before the Spartans kicked into gear. Marist cut its deficit to 12-10 after forcing a few attack errors, but did not get any closer to Michigan State in the opening frame. 

Despite being down by as many as 13 points in the second set, the Red Foxes battled back with front court execution on a 9-2 run highlighted by kills from five different players. The Marist scoring spree brought the Michigan State lead to 20-15, which eventually got trimmed to 23-20. The Spartans sealed the set with consecutive kills from redshirt junior Autumn Bailey, who finished with eight on the night.

All eight ties in the third set took place early, as both teams traded points in the third set for 10 consecutive volleys. An 8-3 run by the Spartans forced a Marist timeout  and proved to be the clincher for Michigan State.

Freshman Stephanie Stone tied for the match high with four blocks while DeSerpa chipped in three digs and a team-high seven kills.

Michigan State junior Holly Toliver posted a double-double with 11 kills and 10 digs. As a team, the Spartans had nine service aces and totaled 10 blocks. They were ranked 38th in last year's NCAA RPI rankings.  

The Red Foxes will face three more non-conference opponents at the Cornell Invitational next weekend. Marist will square off against James Madison on the first night of action at 5 p.m. Sept. 2 and has matches against Colgate (1 p.m.) and the host Big Red (7 p.m.) slated for Sept. 3.