Box Score

Saint Paul, MN. – The St. Scholastica Volleyball team took to the road and headed to Saint Paul, Minn. to compete against the Scots of Macalester College in a MIAC Conference match. Tonight's match ended with the Scotts taking the victory in the fourth set after managing to thwart any attempt at a comeback attempt by the Saints. 

 

How it Happened

First Set

It began with both teams trading points tying the set early at 2-2, but with a kill from Saints' Ava Swangstue (Grand Forks, N.D./Red River HS) to open things up, the Saints would go on an 8-0 run, widening the gap early in set one. 

The remainder of the set stayed largely the same, with the Saints fighting to maintain their strong lead. The Saints dominated the remainder of the set, with a few exceptions, allowing three consecutive points for the Scots. 

Set one ended quickly with the Saints not holding back throughout the entirety of the play. The end was in sight as the Saints made quick work of the Scots scoring three kills in a row to bring the first set to an end, with a final score of 25-10. 

Second Set

Set two opened similarly to the first, however, this time around the Scots' ability was certainly able to test that of the Saints, not only maintaining a tied set but keeping the edge in the set. 

The Scots built themselves an early 5-7 lead, and whenever the Saints were able to beat the Macalester defense, the Scots answered right back with a point of their own, never relenting to the Saints' powerful offensive onslaught. 

After Macalester began to pull further away, building the score to 7-11, the Saints were forced to call a timeout to regroup. 

Coming out of their time out, it was clear the Saints found the piece they needed to succeed in the second set, managing to score three in a row, bringing the score to only within two. 

Both teams exchanged bouts of success, and the tied set brought the score to 16-16. Then the Scots once again took a two-point lead, at 16-18. 

Nearing the end of the set, only five points remained for the Scots to secure the second-set win, the Saints brought the score to within one point, and Macalester took a devastating three-point lead, forcing the Saints to burn their final timeout to regroup. 

Coming out of the Saints' second timeout, their fight was still alive, the Saints brought the Scots lead back to just one point, forcing a Macalester timeout. 

Lindsey Baribeau (Biwabik, Minn./Mesabi East HS), who helped spearhead the Saints' efforts, came up to the net and stocked a Macalester attack dead in its tracks, registering a block to tie the game at 22-22. 

Following an attacking error, the set was now tied at 24-24, forcing one team to win by two. 

In a familiar pattern, the Scots launched another two-point run, concluding the set before the Saints had a chance to respond. The final score for the second set was 24-26.

Third Set

Tied 1-1 going into the third set, two very different sets proceeded the third, the Saints saw a need to change their game plan if they wanted the same success they had in the first. 

The third set was an extended copy of the other two sets, both teams exchanging runs and blows bringing the tie to 10-10. It was at this point that the Scots began to repeat what they had been doing in the previous set. The Scots began to pull away. Trying to alleviate the disparaging deficit they found themselves in, the Saints called their first timeout of the set, at 11-15.

While the Saints put their best foot forward, slowly chipping away at the Scots' lead, however every time the Saints took one step forward, the Scots would match the Saints' effort, only bringing the set closer to another Scot win. 

With the score nearing 25 for the Scots, the Saints still trailed by three points. Just as soon as they saw hope, the Scots came in to squash any they had, scoring three in a row, bringing the game score to 17-23. 

The Scots managed to take the third set, with a final score of 19-25. 

Fourth Set

The Saints opened the scoring up, scoring the first two points of the set. While the Scots did answer back, CSS managed to hold on to their early lead for a little bit. But the Scots showed their skill once more, they tied the set at 5-5 and continued to match the Saints' scores and eventually took the advantage. 

The Saints once again had to regroup with a timeout after the Scots once again, took a two-point lead (7-9).

Just as quickly as the Scots came back from the Saints lead, they built an even bigger gap, one that would be very difficult for the Saints to come back from (10-16).  

The Scots pulled away, leading by seven, with a score of 16-23. The Saints were not out of the fight, as they managed to score five in a row, closing the gap to 21-23 and forcing a Macalester timeout. 

The ball soared to the net as two Saints moved in to make the attack, ultimately ball bounced off their hands and into the net, giving Macalester the win in set four, with a final score of 21-25. 
 

Up Next

The Saints (11-14, 1-6 MIAC) will once again be on the road, this time headed to Winona, Minn. to partake in another MIAC Conference matchup, against the Cardinals (9-14, 0-5 MIAC) of Saint Mary's University, on Saturday, October 26. The Game is scheduled for 7 p.m.