Box Score DULUTH, Minn. (csssaints.com) – For the second consecutive year, the St. Scholastica volleyball team had to rally to win in five sets in an Upper Midwest Athletic Conference (UMAC) Tournament semifinal match at Reif Gymnasium with tonight's victim being Martin Luther College.
Just last Friday, Martin Luther defeated the Saints in five sets at Reif Gymnasium coming from a 2-1 deficit in the second-to-last regular season match. The roles would be reversed tonight with the season in the balance.
St. Scholastica (17-12) jumped out to a 6-3 lead in the opening set, but the Knights crawled back in and went on an 8-1 run to take a 19-14 lead. The Knights took the first set 25-22. Both teams hit well in the opening set with each having a percentage over .390.
Martin Luther (16-12) was the team with the early lead in the second set up 4-1. CSS came back and went on an 8-2 run to take a 9-6 lead. The Saints later used a streak of six straight points to tie the match at a set apiece 25-18.
CSS would struggle in set three, hitting just .029 and the Knights took advantage winning the set 25-16. The fourth set featured eight ties and three lead changes. The Saints led early thanks to some miscues by the Knights, but Martin Luther hung around. With the score 16-16, the Saints went on an 8-2 run to take control. The Knights made it interesting getting within two points of the Saints, but CSS would force a fifth-and-deciding set 25-22.
In the fifth set, the Saints took a 6-2 lead, but the Knights quickly tied it up at six apiece. CSS later stung together four straight points to take a 12-7 lead. The Saints completed the comeback with kills from
Gloria Ohaju (Duluth, Minn./Duluth Central HS) and
Kortney Morrin (Grantsburg, Wis./Grantsburg HS (Northern State)) as CSS won 15-9.
Anna Zyvoloski (Sauk Rapids, Minn./St. Cloud Cathedral HS (Minn.-Duluth)) had a big game for the Saints with a season-high 30 kills.
Taylor Tyllia (Duluth, Minn./Duluth East HS) had nine kills and
Kayla Horbacz (Isanti, Minn./Cambridge-Isanti HS) added eight kills.
Jenny Kienzle (Hermantown, Minn./Hermantown HS) had a team-high 15 digs.
Erika Birkeland (Prior Lake, Minn./Prior Lake HS) had 33 set assists and
Jess Hanowski (Little Falls, Minn./Little Falls HS) had 18 assists.
CSS had more total blocks (12-8) than one of the top blocking teams in the nation, led by Ohaju with one solo block and six block assists. Rachel Hein led the Knights with 15 kills.
The Saints will now move on and face top-seeded Northwestern College in the UMAC Tournament championship on Saturday in St. Paul. The Eagles defeated Minnesota Morris tonight in four sets. This will be the fifth straight year the two teams will face each other in the championship. The match is scheduled to begin at 7 p.m.
