CHICAGO – The second set took the wind out of Roosevelt's sails in a three-set Great Lakes Intercollegiate Athletic Conference loss to No. 16 Ferris State on Saturday at the Goodman Center.

The first and third sets were defined by the Bulldogs going on large runs to put the Lakers (1-14, 0-6 GLIAC) into an early hole. Yet, the second set gave Roosevelt some life and energized the crowd against a ranked foe at home.

It was the Lakers who raced out to an early lead and then managed to hold the Bulldogs at bay for much of the set. After claiming four of the first five points, Roosevelt eventually stretched the lead to 13-9 and 16-12. It looked for a second that the set might slip away from the Lakers when Ferris State went on a 7-0 tear to turn a 22-17 deficit into a 24-22 lead.

However, Roosevelt fended off two set points with kills from Lihi Zaibert and Abigail Wutka, who then ruined a third set-point chance for the Bulldogs with a kill. The Lakers had their first chance at evening the match at 26-25 then again at 27-26, but Ferris State rallied both times to claim the set 29-27.

The first set started off with the teams trading points until Ferris State went on a 5-0 run to extend its 6-5 lead out to 11-5. The Lakers could not manage to cut the deficit below five and fell 25-14 in the opening set.

The third set had the same 25-14 scoreline, but the Bulldogs got to that number by a much different route. They claimed the first four points of the set and built out a 14-5 edge as the Lakers struggled to counter the Ferris State attack. The lead ballooned up to 21-8 before Roosevelt won six of the next nine points before the Bulldogs closed out the match.

Zaibert and Isa Grana tied for the team lead with seven kills while Jessica Maier led the Lakers with 16 assists. Alessia Isgro had nine digs and Regan Miessler added seven of her own. Roosevelt also had four blocks with Ella Portu and Zaibert both being part of two of those double teams.

UP NEXT: The road warriors again leave Chicago next weekend as Roosevelt heads to face Grand Valley State and Wayne State in GLIAC action on Friday and Saturday.