Notables
-CSS now only trails UWS by one game in the overall head-to-head series, 34-33
-Nikki Kienzle (Hermantown, Minn./Hermantown HS) led in overall scoring on the night with 18.5 points
-The 382 people in attendance were the most at a home Saints game since 2011 (576 vs. Northwestern)
DULUTH, Minn. (
csssaints.com) – The College of St. Scholastica volleyball team improved its conference record to 3-1 after taking down the University of Wisconsin-Superior Yellowjackets by a score of 3-1 on Wednesday night at the Reif Gymnasium.
The border battle didn't start off the way the Saints were hoping, as they dropped game one in front of a packed crowd. The ending score of the set was 21-25 in favor of UWS, but it looked a lot worse earlier on. The match started with the Yellowjackets scoring eight consecutive points, thanks in part to the Saints committing five early errors. After Coach Moore's timeout the Saints started to settle down a bit and chip away at the deficit they had dug themselves into.
Noelle Elvehjem (Mora, Minn./Mora HS) rattled off three straight kills to give CSS some momentum, but the hole proved to be too deep for them to fight back from, falling 25-21 after another attacking error sealed the set.
Set two proved to be the opposite of set one, as the Saints were the ones to start strong and jump out to an early 6-1 lead. Elvehjem had another early impact on the set, recording back-to-back kills to get things rolling for CSS. The teams than exchanged points until Superior made a little run and found themselves within one at 16-15. After more back-and-forth play the Saints finally took set two at 25-22, with
Amanda Belden (Esko, Minn./Esko HS) scoring three of the last six points for Scholastica.
Set three started quite similar to that of set two, as the Saints took an early lead again over the Yellowjackets. The score slowly started to increase in favor of CSS from the early 7-4 lead to 15-8. The two points for every one UWS point theme continued throughout the rest of the set, with the Saints taking a 2-1 lead in the match after a Superior attacking error ended it at 25-16.
The Saints didn't waste any time in set four, making sure to put away the Yellowjackets while they had the chance. Four UWS errors followed by an Elvehjem kill gave the Saints an early 5-0 lead. Superior would battle back for the next few volleys, keeping the set close at 8-5 in favor of the home team. That's where the Saints started taking care of business, as they put together an impressive 11-1 run to blow open the set at 19-6. UWS was able to bring it back to within 11 points at 23-12, but two CSS kills from
Christaia Houser (Esko, Minn./Homeschool) and Elvehjem put the game and match away.
The win improves the Saints overall record to 7-11 (3-1 UMAC) while the loss puts the Yellowjackets at a struggling 5-16 (1-3 UMAC).
Top Performers
The Saints had three members above the double-digit mark in kills with
Nikki Kienzle (Hermantown, Minn./Hermantown HS) (14) leading the way, followed by Belden and Elvehjem who each recorded 13 on the night.
Alex Barsody (Onamia, Minn./Onamia HS) led the Saints in the digs department with 21, while
Emily Kessler (Grand Rapids, Minn./Greenway HS (Itasca CC)) (23) and
Espi Austvold (Spicer, Minn./New London-Spicer HS) (21) carried the workload in the setting department with each going for the 20+ mark in assists.
The Yellowjackets were led by Alexis Landherr, who recorded a team-high 13 kills. Emily VerWay played well for UWS as well, recording a match-high 33 assists to go along with her 14 digs.
Up Next
The Saints will be playing host to two teams this upcoming weekend, with the first being another UMAC opponent in that of Martin Luther (1 p.m.) Following the UMAC matchup will be a non-conference match featuring Martin Luther and Hamline. The Saints will then take on Hamline at 5 p.m. to close out the night.
