Emma Bruder (Jr.-Frankfort, Ill.) tied a career high with 25 digs to lead a quality defensive effort, but the Lakeland University women's volleyball team was defeated in three sets by the University of Wisconsin-Stevens Point Wednesday night.

The Muskies made the Pointers work for virtually every point in their home opener for the season at the Moose & Dona Woltzen Gymnasium. Lakeland struggled on the attack, though, coming up a few points shy in several key moments and dropped the non-conference match to a strong Pointers team that received votes this week in the AVCA/NCAA Division III Top 25 Coaches Poll.

The Muskies (2-3 overall) played from behind most of the night but were typically within striking distance. Lakeland staved off two set points in the first set to get to 24-23 before UWSP (4-1 overall) finished with a block, and the hosts were down 17-15 in the late stages of the second set and 20-18 in the third before the Pointers inched back ahead further.

The night was marked by long points, with the three sets taking nearly 1 1/2 hours to complete, and Bruder's 25 kills from the back row was one of a number of notable performances defensively. Three other Muskies finished with at least 11 digs, with Neenah Primas (Fr.-Oostburg, Wis.) totaling 18, Allison Errthum (Sr.-Joliet, Ill.) posting 12 and Brianna Johnson (Jr.-Altoona, Wis.) with 11. On the other side, Kendra Kundinger finished with a match-high 29 digs to lead Stevens Point.

The Pointers were the slightly more effective team on the attack, though, hitting .115 (38 kills and 21 errors) to the Muskies' .013 with 28 kills and 26 errors. Shannon Bishop (So.-River Grove, Ill.) and Shelby Block (Fr.-Sheboygan, Wis.) posted seven kills each, but no other Lakeland player had more than five kills.

Primas also finished with 14 assists for another double-double, while Taylor Bubolz (Fr.-Howards Grove, Wis.) added 10 digs. Bishop also finished with three block assists.

April Gehl led UWSP with 12 kills, while Danielle Coleman also added nine kills off the bench, including the clinchers in the second and third sets.

Lakeland now gets ready to head to Stevens Point this weekend for the UW-Stevens Point Invitational. The Muskies will open the two-day event Friday at 3 p.m. by playing Gustavus Adolphus (Minn.) College, which is ranked 20th in the latest top 25 coaches poll.