Match Summary

WINONA, Minn. — For the second day in a row, the Saint Mary's University volleyball team found themselves staring up from the bottom of a 2-0 hole.

And, unfortunately for the Cardinals, a repeat performance of Friday's come-from-behind win over Hamline — in which Molli Dant (Forest City, Iowa) led a late-match charge with 15 kills in the final two games of SMU's 3-2 win over Hamline — was not in the cards.

Not with sixth-ranked St. Thomas on the opposite side of the net.

The Tommies, fresh off back-to-back losses to Carleton and Bethel, took out their frustrations on the Cardinals, cruising to a 3-0 (30-20, 30-22, 30-21) Minnesota Intercollegiate Athletic Conference win at the SMU Gym.

"The scores may not say it, but we really did not play that poorly," said SMU coach Mike Lester, whose team had its two-match winning streak snapped with the loss. "We hung right with them every game until about the 20-point mark, and then we just couldn't keep it up.

"St. Thomas is a very good team — they are big and they are solid blockers — and we just gave them way too many free swings," continued Lester, noting that SMU collected 79 digs, but finished with just 39 kills. "When you dig the ball that many times, and don't get a swing from half of them, you are in trouble.

"Especially against a team as good as St. Thomas."

Dant, who collected a season-high 21 kills in Friday's 3-2 win over Hamline, was the Cardinals' leader again against the Tommies, finishing with 11 kills and 20 digs. Breanna Benham (Deer River, Minn.) dished out 30 assists and 16 digs, while Theresa Perrini (Fairway, Kan.) tallied 21 digs.

"I was proud of the way our team hung in there and kept working hard," said Lester, whose team fell to 2-5 in the MIAC and 6-11 overall. "We weren't as in control (vs. St. Thomas) as we have been lately. Everything seemed a little rushed, and we were scrambling way too much just to put the ball back over —  and teams like St. Thomas are going to take advantage of that.

"We played well, but you can't put yourself in 2-0 holes night after night and expect to be able to battle back every time. I think as much as anything, we just ran out of gas."