Entering what became a 3-0 Bulldog volleyball win with 5,423 career assists, senior setter Kaylee Maat earned 43 assists to take sole possession of the GLIAC’s all-time assist record with 5,466.
No. 1 ranked Ferris’ Saturday victory over the Michigan Tech Huskies keeps the squad undefeated, as they sport a perfect 26-0 record. In the Bulldogs’ past six matches, they have only dropped a single set and have not lost a set in three straight games.
Despite the tremendous achievement, Maat remains humble and gives credit to her teammates’ performances.
“My passers make my job really easy,” Maat said. “It’s a cool thing that my name is out there. But, I’m not doing it for me. I’m doing it for the girls next to me.”
Before Maat, Grand Valley’s Kristy Kale owned the record.
Maat picked up the bragging rights to the record on senior night, no less. For the past four seasons, head coach Tia Brandel-Wilhelm has watched Maat get stronger.
“Kaylee is a woman that has had to work hard to become the player that she is,” Brandel-Wilhelm said. “That girl is in the gym every day, all summer. She’s in the gym early every single day. It’s just nice to see someone work that hard and have it pay off for them.”
The Bulldogs and Huskies traded blows early in the first set, with the lead swapping between the teams four times. After Ferris went ahead 8-7, they did not lose the advantage and took the set 25-19.
With a timeout called in the second set, the Bulldogs trailed Michigan Tech by four. With an assist on a Syann Fairfield kill, Maat tied the all-time GLIAC assists record at 5,441. It only took Maat two more serves to collect the record-breaking assist, putting her at 5,442 assists in her career.
Despite a 19-14 deficit, Ferris continued to push back against the Huskies. The effort culminated in a 27-25 second set victory, which forced Michigan Tech into a win-or-go-home third set.
Like the second set, the Bulldogs found themselves down again but worked their way back. After equalizing the third set at 14-14, a quick run of scoring put the game at 17-14.
However, the Huskies refused to go quietly and, at one point, led Ferris 21-20. The Bulldogs went on another run to finish out the game and take the third set 25-22.
With the 3-0 sweep, Ferris finishes their regular season at home and will go on the road and finish the season against Purdue Northwest on Friday, Nov. 15 and Wisconsin-Parkside on Saturday, Nov. 16.