ST. PAUL, Minn. – The College of St. Scholastica volleyball team pushed Macalester College to a deciding fifth set Saturday evening, but the Scots closed the match with five consecutive points to hand the Saints a 3-2 loss at the Leonard Center.
St. Scholastica took the opening set 25-21 before Macalester responded with 25-16 and 25-19 victories in the second and third sets. The Saints answered with a 25-18 win in the fourth to force the deciding frame, where Macalester prevailed 15-11. The result moved St. Scholastica to 4-9 overall and 0-2 in MIAC play, while Macalester improved to 7-7 and 2-0 in the conference.
The opening set went back and forth before the Saints made their move late. With the score tied at 17, St. Scholastica scored four straight points to take control. Abby Zins (Chisago Lakes, MN/Chisago Lakes High School) helped carry the Saints across the finish line, recording seven kills in the opening frame as CSS finished off the 25-21 victory.
St. Scholastica carried that momentum into the second set and built an early 8-3 advantage. Macalester responded with a run of its own, eventually taking a 10-9 lead before pulling away. The Scots hit .370 in the set while holding the Saints to a .103 percentage, evening the match with a 25-16 victory.
The Saints were much more efficient offensively in the third, hitting .357 with 12 kills and only two errors, but Macalester was nearly perfect at the net. The Scots recorded 18 kills without an attacking error on 33 attempts, hitting .545 on their way to a 25-19 win and a 2-1 match lead.
Facing elimination, St. Scholastica responded in the fourth. The Saints erased an early deficit and broke a 10-10 tie with a strong stretch through the middle of the set. Lilli Rechichi (Ely, MN/Ely Memorial HS) provided six kills in the frame as CSS hit .250 and held Macalester to .033. The Saints stretched their lead to 22-15 before closing out the 25-18 win to force a fifth set.
Neither side created much separation in the deciding frame. St. Scholastica took a 9-7 lead following a Bryn Ziegler (Hutchinson, MN/Hutchinson HS) service ace, and later moved back in front 11-10. Macalester answered from there, scoring the final five points of the match to earn the 15-11 victory.
Zins led all St. Scholastica attackers with 19 kills on 54 attempts, hitting .222 for the match. Rechichi added 13 kills while hitting a team-best .357 and contributed four block assists. Grace Sandmeyer (Lake Crystal, MN/Lake Crystal-Wellcome Memorial) finished with eight kills and three block assists. Bailey Husbands (Baudette, MN/Lake of the Woods HS) directed the offense with 36 assists, while Cassidy Lustig (Ashland, WI/Ashland HS) anchored the back row with 25 digs.
The Saints finished with a 58-51 advantage in kills and a 75-71 edge in digs, while recording seven team blocks. Macalester held the advantage in hitting percentage, .195 to .163.
St. Scholastica returns home Saturday, Oct. 3, to host Bethel University at 5 p.m. in Reif Gymnasium.
