Day two of the Forester Invitational was Saturday and the home team split its two matches, defeating Mount Mary University 25-8, 25-13, 25-15 before falling 19-25, 25-16, 27-29, 25-15, 15-8 to Carroll University.
Sophomore Juli Barrientos served up a career-high five aces in the team's first match of the day. She also led the Foresters with 10 assists and added eight digs. Senior Izzi Visnjevac paced the squad with 10 digs while classmate Madison Stevens had a team-high seven kills and three blocks.
Lake Forest closed out the opening set by winning 13 of 14 points and the second with a 9-2 run. The home team rattled off seven straight points to start the third but Mount Mary closed to within four at 15-11. The Foresters took 10 of the next 14 points, however, to secure the match.
Gegen pounded out 16 kills and added three blocks against Carroll. Other team-highs included 22 digs by Visnjevac, 19 assists by Barrientos, and four blocks by Stevens.
Lake Forest led the first set 17-16 before winning eight of the last 11 points, the last on an ace by Visnjevac. Carroll made a similar run in set two, taking 12 of the last 18 points to even the match. An 8-0 Forester run in set three turned a four-point deficit into a lead of the same size at 19-15. Both teams fought off a pair of set point opportunities before Lake Forest took it 29-27. The Pioneers jumped out to a 13-4 lead in the fourth set and were ahead by at least seven the rest of the way. The visitors maintained a small lead through most of set five before winning the final four points and the match.
The Foresters went 1-2 at their season-opening invitational and will look to even their record Tuesday night at North Park University. The match will begin at 7:00 p.m.
