Michigan Tech senior Laura De Marchi in action against Minnesota State on Sept. 3, 2021, in Houghton, Mich. (David Archambeau/For the Gazette)

HOUGHTON — To say the Keweenaw Classic did not go the way the Michigan Tech Huskies volleyball team wanted it to go would be an understatement.

Huskies coach Matt Jennings said the goal was to go 4-0 against competition including three nationally ranked opponents from Minnesota.

But that was a lofty goal.

Of the three losses the Huskies suffered, the worst was a five-set loss to Minnesota State on Friday morning. The hosts won the first set handily at 25-18, but were shut down over the next two sets, forcing them to fight for a fourth set victory in order to force a fifth and deciding set.

“Good teams are gonna play well, in any environment,” Jennings said. “The challenge in and of itself was playing four good teams, three exceptional teams, in the same weekend to begin the season. So did I expect to go 4-0, I did not. We wanted to, but that’d be a tough ask there.

“Considering everything that happened on the weekend and where we were, there’s a lot of good to look at there.”

While the last three matches were not what the Huskies wanted, there were some good things that came out of the weekend.

The three-day weekend saw the Huskies knock off No. 7 Minnesota-Duluth on Thursday night to open the tournament in straight sets. They did open the match on Friday against the Mavericks with a win. They then fought back once the Mavericks took a 2-1 lead in sets.

Friday night, they fought hard in a see-saw battle against No. 16 St. Cloud State. They won the first set, lost the second, won the third before losing the fourth and fifth sets. They did not go quietly in either set, despite losing fifth-year setter Laura De Marchi to injury in the fourth set when she took a spiked ball in the face.

“Immediately, your concern goes to, like, how is Laura? Is she okay?” Jennings said. “That was a shot. You know, it’s part of the game. I think that adds, actually, to what made the overall effort there one that we can be proud of. We managed to keep that match close when she goes down. I mean, you could hear a pin drop in there when that happened. For our team to stay, to stay focused, and to continue to ride was, I think, pretty impressive.”

They fought the No. 2 Concordia-St. Paul Golden Bears hard after dropping the first set and despite a disappointing performance from fifth-year outside hitter Olivia Ghormley, who looked, as Jennings described it, fatigued in that fourth match.

The Golden Bears had answers for nearly everything that De Marchi’s replacement, senior setter Lina Espejo-Ramirez tried after she stung them early with a dumped ball over the net.

It was a learning experience for the Huskies to see some of the most consistent top teams in the country over recent years. From Jennings’ perspective, he felt the team learned a lot about the type of effort they are going to need night in and night out to be successful.

“The difference of Concordia, overall, compared to other teams, are those little points,” he said. You go to the Concordia game, and Lina dumps on them one time early, and then never again. They didn’t let it happen again. They were on her every time. 

“It’s the self corrections that some of those teams make. I think that’s what we’re looking to get to be.”

Two bright spots offensively for the Huskies were sophomore outside hitter Jillian Kuizenga, whose blocking game still needs work, and sophomore outside hitter Lindy Oujiri, who stepped in against the Golden Bears and picked up five kills in the third set when the team needed a spark.

Jennings likes where Kuizenga’s offensive game is at as she sits second only to fifth-year outside hitter Anna Jonynas with 50 kills on the season.

“Jill, from an offensive perspective, has come a long way,” Jennings said. “That’s a reason that she was an All-Conference pick last year. She continues to improve. As she becomes, and has become, more consistent, our offense does as well.”

Jennings also feels that Oujiri is working hard to make herself an option when the team needs something extra, and that is exciting for her coach.

“Lindy will be a big part of what we’re doing going forward,” Jennings said. “She needs to continue to be prepared to come in and play some tough minutes for us and some tough points for us as she had to over the weekend.

“Right now, she’s got the goods. It’s all about keeping her confidence and her approaching each and every play with confidence. When she does that, she’s a lot of fun to watch.”

The Huskies head out on the road to take part in the Illinois-Springfield Invitational this weekend. They open with McKendree at 11 a.m. Friday before facing No. 8 Northwest Missouri State at 5 p.m. On Saturday, they will face a former GLIAC opponent, Lake Erie, at 11 a.m. before facing the hosts at 8 p.m.

The tournament will be a good test for the Huskies despite not having the overall quality of opponents they saw this past weekend. Jennings feels his team still has some bugs in their system to work out, and this weekend will provide a good opportunity to see if their hard work in practice this week pays off.