MORRIS, Minn. – The University of Minnesota Morris volleyball team returned home on Friday after seven straight on the road and dispatched Martin Luther College, 3-0 (25-16, 25-22, 25-18). The win ups the UMN Morris record to 16-6 overall and 8-1 in the UMAC.

In the first set, a stretch in which Minnesota Morris scored seven out of eight points erased a 3-2 deficit and staked the Cougars to a 10-4 lead. Laura Wellbrock started the run with three kills in four points to put Minnesota Morris ahead. After the Knights got within two points, 12-10, the Cougars had runs of four, three, and four points during the remainder of the set to coast to the comfortable lead. Two more Wellbrock kills and a Maggie Jones ace late in the set pushed the advantage to 23-13 and Mary Cate Ziembiec ended it five points later to secure the opening set.

Following a 4-0 start to the second set, Minnesota Morris actually went behind at 12-11 and traded the lead with Martin Luther much of the way. With the Knights in front, 22-21, the Cougars came to life to grab the commanding 2-0 lead in the match. Jones tied it up with a kill before a Martin Luther attack error gave UMN Morris the lead for good. Ziembiec followed with an ace and a block from Jones and McKenzie Newton finished it.

Martin Luther started the third set with a 6-1 lead and forced a Minnesota Morris timeout, but the Cougars came back to knot the score up at 7-7. The middle portion of the set was dominated by Minnesota Morris. Trailing 10-9, the Cougars proceeded to go up, 20-12. Jones had three kills in that stretch and both Ava Brunn and Sydney Eckhoff added aces. The teams mostly traded sideouts from there and a kill from Lacie O'Leary put the finishing touches on the sweep.

The Cougars hit .333 as a team on the evening and didn't have a single set in which they hit less than .300. Wellbrock led the attack with 12 kills and a .522 hitting percentage, while Jones notched nine kills and a .643 hitting percentage. Lydia Nash added another nine kills. Newton logged match highs and a double-double with 31 assists and 14 digs. Eckhoff also reached double-digit digs with 10 on the night.

Minnesota Morris finishes the weekend off tomorrow with a 1 p.m. tilt against Bethany Lutheran College back at James Gremmels Court.