ST. Paul, Minn. - The Northern State Wolves put their young, fearless team on the line against yet another ranked team, this time in a win-or-go-home match-up against the 16th ranked Wayne State Wildcats in the quarterfinals of the Northern Sun Intercollegiate Conference / US Bank Tournament.  And win NSU did.

The Wolves, who have now won 13 of their last 15 matches and entered the weekend as the fifth seed on a stacked eight-team tournament, took a 3-1 win over the Wildcats by set scores of 25-17, 26-28, 25-18, 25-17.  NSU improves to 19-10 overall, while the Wildcats, ranked eighth in the latest NCAA Central Region poll, slipped to 22-9 on the season.  WSC was looking to solidify its standing in the regional poll with a win.  NCAA tournament selections will be made on Sunday night.

The win is a reversal of an Oct. 19 match-up between the two squads in Aberdeen.  WSC took a 3-1 win in that contest, but the Wolves would have none of it this time around.

NSU got double-digit kill efforts from their entire front line led by sophomore Macey Finizio's 18 kills, just shy of a career high.  The sophomore committed just five errors on 42 attempts for a solid .310 hitting percentage.  Freshman Kelsey Chambers tallied 14 kills and four blocks from the right side, while senior Kaleinani Kabalis added 12 kills.  Chambers and Kabalis also tallied a combined 36 digs in a solid all-around effort.

Freshman Cari McGarvie and senior Chelsey Chavez combined for 14 kills and seven blocks out of the middle for the Wolves.  Ella Campbell tallied 17 digs and four service aces, while freshman Drew Smith dished out 49 assists and guided the Wolves to a .273 percentage at the net.

The Wolves used several runs on the scoreboard to their advantage, including an 8-3 run in the opener to pull away from an 18-14 lead to take a 1-0 lead.

NSU then scored three service aces in the early going of the second set to take a 14-9 lead before the Wildcats turned the tables with a 6-0 run of their own to take the lead.  The Wolves fended off three straight Wildcat set points in the late going, but two straight kills from Katie Hughes and Elizabeth Gebardt allowed the Wildcats to tie the match at 1-all.

That would be as close as the Wildcats would get to victory.  NSU used a 7-1 run in the middle of the third set, aided by four straight WSC miscues, to take control, then rallied from a 10-12 deficit in the fourth with a 12-3 run that took the wind completely out of the Wildcat sails.  Kills from Kabalis and McGarvie gave the Wolves match point and an attacking error at the net by the Wildcats - their 28th of the night - sealed off the win for NSU.

The Wolves not move on to the semifinals of the tournament and will take on top-seeded, top-ranked and tournament host Concordia-St. Paul on Saturday.  First serve is set for 7 p.m. in CU's Gangelhoff Center with the winner taking on the winner of #2 Southwest Minnesota State and #3 Minnesota-Duluth in the championship match.