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MARQUETTE — Marquette overcame an early deficit to secure a four-set victory over Negaunee in a thrilling high school volleyball matchup between two undefeated teams on Tuesday night at Marquette Senior High School.

The Sentinels improved to 3-0, while the Miners are now 2-1 after MSHS posted a 23-25, 25-15, 25-16, 25-15 victory.

Marquette head coach Melissa Butler praised her team’s resilience, noting how her players regrouped after dropping the first set.

Negaunee head coach Krista Squiers talks with her Miners during a timeout in the third set of a high school volleyball match played against Marquette at Marquette Senior High School on Tuesday. (Journal photo by Caden Sierra)

“Negaunee gave us a tough fight from the beginning, and losing that first set put a fire under the girls to be more disciplined in each play,” she said.

The coach also highlighted the performance of sophomore Claire Parent, who stepped into the middle blocker role in place of injured senior Jocelyn Mead.

“Claire handled it with grace and demonstrated her resilience,” Butler said. “Without missing a beat, every player contributed to the win.”

Negaunee coach Krista Squiers was encouraged with her team’s early success, while they can learn from the overall result.

“We came out very strong in the first set and were able to close out on a good Marquette squad,” she said in emailed comments. “In the following three sets, we had solid performances from the serve line, but got stuck in some rotations and had undisciplined play that we couldn’t quite overcome.

Marquette’s Kendall Chipelewski, right, gives head coach Melissa Butler a smile with her double low-five as she is substituted off the court during a high school volleyball match played against Negaunee at Marquette Senior High School on Tuesday. (Journal photo by Caden Sierra)

“We’ll definitely be taking this nonconference loss as a learning opportunity.”

Squiers also mentioned some of her Miners’ statistics. Delaney Gladwell led the offense with 11 kills while adding 11 digs; Madison Pekrul had nine kills and 14 digs; Theresa Anderson three kills, three blocks and two service aces; and Janelle Rautiola was the all-around leader with two kills, two aces, 16 digs and 25 assists.

Negaunee came out strong, jumping to a 6-3 lead in the first set and keeping the pressure on Marquette.

Struggling a bit early, the Sentinels battled back to close the gap before a thrilling rally kept Negaunee’s lead at 16-13. In a back-and-forth finish, Marquette briefly held a 22-21 advantage but couldn’t seal the deal, with the Miners taking the set.

Marquette responded with authority in the second set. The Sentinels took control early, scoring the first five points to force an early timeout by the Miners. Negaunee struggled to keep pace as Marquette’s defense tightened up and its offense clicked into gear.

With a 19-11 lead late in the set, the Sentinels comfortably finished off the set to even the match at one set apiece.

The third set proved to be another tight contest at the outset, with the teams deadlocked at 6-6 and 10-10. However, the Sentinels were finally able to distance themselves midway through the set, capitalizing on key defensive plays and extending their lead to 15-10.

A Negaunee timeout couldn’t shift the momentum as Marquette continued to surge to take the set a 2-1 match lead.

With momentum seemingly on their side, MSHS came out firing in the fourth set and built a dominant 6-0 lead. Negaunee fought back to trim the deficit to 10-5, but the Sentinels’ strong blocking and defense allowed them to stay in control. Leading 22-12, Marquette weathered a “Miner” rally by the visitors before closing out the set and match.

While Marquette doesn’t play again until Tuesday evening in Calumet, Negaunee will be busy over the next few days, playing at Ishpeming at 6:30 p.m. today, then traveling downstate for the Charlevoix Invitational on Saturday morning.

The Miners also play on Tuesday, hosting Escanaba at 6:45 p.m.

Caden Sierra can be reached at 906-228-2500, ext. 551. His email address is csierra@nmu.edu.