Summary vs. Coe /
Summary vs. Bethany Lutheran
GameDay Online /
Tournament Results
DECORAH, Iowa — After a run of four straight matches decided by a 3-1 score, the Saint Mary's University volleyball team decided enough was enough Saturday morning during the second day of the Luther Invitational.
The Cardinals, fresh off a 3-1 victory over Mount Mercy and a 3-1 loss against Luther in Friday's first day of the two-day tournament, wasted little time getting back into win column, rolling to a pair of 3-0 victories over Coe and Bethany Lutheran Saturday to complete a 3-1 run through the tournament.
"It was good to see us come out and really play well today," said SMU coach
Mike Lester, whose team picked up its first 3-0 wins since opening the season with a sweep of Beloit. "We came out and played really well in our first match (against Coe) — by far one of our most consistent performances of the season
"
Speaking of consistent, Alex Nold (Spring Valley, Minn.) and Jessica Mate (St. Charles, Ill.) were just that in leading the SMU offense.
After collecting 32 kills in SMU's win vs. Mount Mercy and loss to Luther, Nold added 18 more on Saturday en route to earning all-tournament honors. Mate was equally impressive, knocking down 11 kills vs. Coe and 12 more vs. Bethany Lutheran.
"It's amazing that the same group of individuals can play so different from one day to the other," said Lester, whose team has now gone a combined 9-3 in its three tournament appearances this season — finishing 3-1 at the Elmhurst Tournament, the Jefferson's Sugar Loaf Classic and the Luther Invitational. "We did not play all that well (Friday), but I thought we bounced back and really played well today.
"Hopefully we can keep that momentum going this week."
