Notables
-Saints are on a four-match win streak
-First UMAC Tournament win since 2015
-21st straight win over BLC
DULUTH, Minn. (
csssaints.com) – The St. Scholastica volleyball team swept Bethany Lutheran College on Monday night to advance in the Upper Midwest Athletic Conference (UMAC) Tournament.
How it Happened
The Saints rolled out a quick 5-0 lead in set one with a first-point kill from
Sofia Rajala (Deer River, Minn./Greenway HS) to shut down Bethany Lutheran (11-18) from the start. A short while later, CSS went on another run led by a kill from
Madissen Burns (Watertown, Minn./Watertown-Mayer HS) and an ace from
Brooke Schermann (Brooklyn Park, Minn./Totino-Grace HS) to produce a seven-point lead. The Saints would maintain their wide spread lead and eventually would take the set 25-13.
Set two, with the help of two kills from Rajala, allowed the Saints an early 6-3 advantage. Though, the Vikings were able to even the match at 10-10 after scoring three unanswered points. It was not until the end of the set that the Vikings would pull ahead 18-17 and get their first lead of the night. However, the Saints offense regrouped just in time with four kills and an ace to generate a final eight-point run for a 25-18 set two victory.
The third set began much like the first with an initial 7-2 lead for the Saints. That lead was only widened until mid-set when Bethany Lutheran went a four-point run to bring them within one. A battle for every point allowed the Saints a late 20-19 lead. Three kills from Burns, Schermann, and
Emily Udermann (Rosemount, Minn./Rosemount HS) gave them the boost they needed to seal set three at 25-21 for the sweep.
Top Performers
Schermann led the team with 19 digs and 11 kills. Rajala added eight kills to the mix while
Ellie Greenwaldt (Raymond, Minn./Central Minnesota Christian School) tallied 20 assists.
Up Next
The Saints (12-17) advance in the UMAC Tournament and will battle the number one seed, University of Northwestern (22-8), in St. Paul, at 7 p.m. Wednesday in the semifinal round.
