Wartburg cruises past Cardinals

Donny Nadeau, SMU Sports Information Office

Match Summary

WAVERLY, Iowa — The Saint Mary's University volleyball team certainly had its chances to push its record to 2-0 against nationally ranked opponents in the opening match of the Wartburg Invitational Friday evening.

Unfortunately, when push came to shove, the Cardinals pushed — and Wartburg shoved right back.

Despite being just one point away from a win in Game 2, leading 29-27, and holding a two-point lead late in Game 3, the Cardinals were swept 3-0 by the Knights — who entered the tournament ranked No. 8 in the latest AVCA poll.

Wartburg cruised to a 30-21 win in the opening game, but then had to scratch and claw its way to wins in Games 2 and 3, eventually winning the second game 32-30 and the third 33-31.

Kirstan Rouzer (Comstock, Wis.) led the way for the Cardinals, collecting a match-high 19 kills, while also added 20 digs and two blocks. Tracy Koertgen (Crystal Lake, Ill.) and Erin Coleman (Austin, Minn.) chipped in nine kills each, while Melissa Cowan (Algonquin, Ill.) recorded 39 assists and Ashley Dingels (Gibbon, Minn.) notched four service aces.

The Cardinals rebounded from their tournament-opening loss in impressive fashion, routing Gettysburg 3-0 (30-24, 30-18, 30-19).

Dingels led the Cardinals' offensive attack, tallying 11 kills and boasting a .588 attack percentage. Koertgen chipped in eight kills, while Rouzer had 14 digs and four aces, and Cowan dished out 24 assists.

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