Marquette, MI – It took five sets to determine a winner between the Parkside Rangers and the Northern Michigan Wildcats, as the two programs battled it out in the Upper Peninsula. Although Natalie Harris and Kendal Zeiter posted new career highs, the Rangers saw their comeback fall just short in their final regular-season road match.

Inside the box score:

• Kendal Zeiter notched a career-high 15 kills.
• Natalie Harris achieved a career-high 31 digs, marking her seventh straight match with at least 20. Harris continues to make her case to be GLAIC's Defensive Player of the Year, leading the conference in digs by a significant margin. 
• The Rangers out-blocked the Wildcats, 12-6, with three blocks from Lindsay Krznarich, Sam Fisch, and Monica Lukasiewicz.

How it happened: 
After being swept the night before, the same theme seemed to be taking a toll on the Rangers again in this match. Northern Michigan controlled the first set, leading for nearly the entire time, and cruised to a 25-19 victory to set the tone.

However, the Rangers found their spark in the second set, responding with a massive counterpunch. Once the Rangers took a 4-3 lead in the early stages, they did not look back, as kills from Monica Lukasiewicz and Sierra Kilbourn helped extend the lead. Midway through the set, the Rangers went on an impressive eight-point run, pushing ahead to 20-9. The sequence included two service aces from Lindsay Krznarich, along with kills from Sam Fisch and Kendal Zeiter. Krznarich capped off the set with her third kill, securing a dominant 25-15 win.

In the third set, the Rangers jumped out to an early lead, with Karlee Lois delivering a pair of aces. However, even after a 7-3 start and seven kills from Kendal Zeiter, the Rangers couldn't close it out, allowing the Wildcats to take the set 25-21.

Facing elimination, the Rangers dug deep to claim the fourth set and extend the match. Despite falling behind 7-3, they battled back as Lily Ray set up successful kills for Elizabeth Truckenbrod and Sierra Kilbourn. Northern Michigan maintained a 17-13 lead and later led 19-17. But the Rangers rallied, going on a five-point run fueled by kills from Sam Fisch and Lindsay Krznarich, ultimately winning the set 25-21.

In the deciding fifth set, the Rangers started strong, leading 5-3. Kendal Zeiter continued her stellar night with more key plays in the final set. After a kill from Sierra Kilbourn, the teams switched sides with Parkside up 8-6. However, the Rangers couldn't hold off the Wildcats, who scored five of the last seven points to clinch the five-set battle.

Next: 
The Rangers return home for their final stretch of regular-season matches, taking on Purdue Northwest on Thursday and Roosevelt on Friday. With just four matches remaining, the Rangers stand at 9-14 overall and 5-7 in conference play. For coverage of next weekend's events, visit ParksideRangers.com/coverage.