ST. PAUL, Minn. – The University of Sioux Falls Volleyball team responded from an opening-set loss to take the second frame from No. 5 Concordia-St. Paul before ultimately falling 3-1 Saturday evening inside the Gangelhoff Center.
Sioux Falls handed the nationally ranked Golden Bears a 25-20 loss in the second set, but Concordia-St. Paul responded to take the final two frames and secure the 25-17, 20-25, 25-13, 25-18 victory. The Cougars move to 4-6 overall and 0-2 in NSIC play.
The Basics
Final: No. 5 Concordia-St. Paul 3, Sioux Falls 1
Set Scores: 17-25, 25-20, 13-25, 18-25
Records: Sioux Falls 4-6 (0-2 NSIC) | Concordia-St. Paul 7-2 (2-0 NSIC)
Location: Gangelhoff Center | St. Paul, Minn.
How It Happened
Sioux Falls came out aggressively in the opening set, scoring four of the first six points to take an early 4-2 advantage. Concordia-St. Paul answered with a run of its own, eventually using an 8-1 stretch to turn a 4-4 tie into a 12-5 lead. The Cougars cut the deficit to three at 12-9 behind a Bre Van Den Top kill, a Hollie Peterson service ace and a Golden Bear attack error, but CSP regained control and took the opener, 25-17.
The Cougars delivered their best response of the night in the second. After trailing 4-3, USF rattled off six straight points behind the serving of Lucy Larson to build a 9-4 advantage. Sioux Falls extended its lead to 17-10 following a Gretchen Volk service ace before CSP made a late push to cut the lead to 22-20. Aubrey Gates answered with back-to-back kills before Peterson closed the set with an ace, giving the Cougars a 25-20 win and evening the match at one set apiece. USF hit .324 in the frame with 15 kills.
The third set began tightly, with the teams trading points through a 4-4 tie. Concordia-St. Paul then found separation with an 11-1 run to take a 15-5 advantage. Sioux Falls was unable to recover as the Golden Bears took the set, 25-13.
USF continued to battle in the fourth. The Cougars stayed within striking distance early and pulled within one at 9-8 before CSP stretched its lead to 17-11. Sioux Falls continued to fight and scored three straight points while facing match point, but the Golden Bears closed out the 25-18 set victory to take the match in four.
Key Cougars
Aubrey Gates led the Cougar attack with 12 kills, including eight during USF's second-set victory. Ella Walker continued her efficient play in the middle, finishing with eight kills and just two errors on 15 swings for a team-best .400 hitting percentage.
Bre Van Den Top added six kills, while Adyson Knake recorded five kills and two blocks. Haley Wolfe finished with four kills, two blocks and a service ace.
Maci Lerseth anchored the back row with a match-high 26 digs, while Lucy Larson added 10. Peterson finished with 17 assists, six digs and a match-high three service aces, while Volk added 14 assists, seven digs and an ace.
Key Numbers
Sioux Falls recorded 39 kills and 61 digs while finishing with five service aces. The Cougars' best offensive performance came in the second set, where they hit .324 with 15 kills and just four errors.
USF held No. 5 Concordia-St. Paul to a .228 hitting percentage for the match, including .189 in the third and .162 in the fourth. The Golden Bears finished with 55 kills and 11 service aces.
Lerseth's 26 digs were the most by either player in the match, while Walker's .400 hitting percentage led the Cougars. Sioux Falls also committed just two service errors across four sets.
Up Next
Sioux Falls returns home next weekend to host Minnesota State and #8 St. Cloud State. The Cougars will square off against the Mavericks Friday night at 6pm before hosting #8 St. Cloud State on Saturday at 2pm for their annual Junior Cougar Club match.
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