MORRIS, Minn. - Minnesota Morris and North Central met for more than a volleyball match Saturday at the UMM PE Center; the two combined efforts for melanoma awareness.

Senior Marissa Ekness was diagnosed with melanoma, a form of skin cancer, early in 2017. After months of doctor visits and surgeries, Ekness was recently announced cancer free. Prior to Saturday's match, as a surprise for Ekness, players from both Minnesota Morris and North Central as well as fans, donned black Team Marissa shirts. On the front of the shirt was "#melanomore" with "Team Marissa 5" on the back. Black is the color associated for melanoma.

As for the match, the Cougars swept the Rams 3 sets to 0 (25-6, 25-11, 25-10). Ekness led with 13 kills. Layne Herrmann had 42 assists and Katie Reitsma led with 11 digs.

Minnesota Morris (20-5, 10-1 in UMAC) next plays at Northwestern Wednesday night.