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Game Summary vs. St. Thomas / GameDay Online

ST. PAUL, Minn. — For the third time in the last two weeks, the Saint Mary's University volleyball team squared off against a nationally ranked team when the Cardinals took the court against fifth-ranked St. Thomas.

Unfortunately for the Cardinals, the third time was anything but a charm.

In fact, the end result was similar to SMU's first two go-arounds with nationally ranked teams — a Minnesota Intercollegiate Athletic Conference loss.

The Cardinals gave the Tommies everything they could handle, but in the end, UST escaped with a 3-1 (25-15, 25-18, 25-27, 27-25).

"It's tough to lose a match like that, but we played so well, it's hard to be disappointed," said SMU coach Mike Lester. "Defensively we were outstanding, we just didn't have enough firepower to put them away."

After sleepwalking through the first two sets, the Cardinals decided to get back on track, rallying from a 24-21 deficit in the third set to win 27-25, then led 23-20 in the fourth set, only to lose seven of the set's last nine points in falling 27-25.

Courtney Runge (St. James, Minn.) and Sarah Gardner (Rochester, Minn.) led the way for the Cardinals, each posting 14 kills, while Gardner added 14 digs and three blocks, while Runge chipped in 10 digs and a pair of blocks. Theresa Perrini (Fairway, Kan.) finished with a team-leading 38 digs — one of five SMU players with at least 10 digs — while Brittany Cherwinka (Faribault, Minn.) dished out 41 assists in the losing effort.

"St. Thomas is a very, very good team — no question one of the best teams we'll face all year," said Lester. "And I thought we hung right with them. We had a 23-20 lead in the third set and couldn't quite get over the hump — we win that set and it's a race to 15 (in the fifth and final set).

"It was a great college volleyball match."

The Cardinals, who had their four-match winning streak snapped — fall to 3-3 in the MIAC with their fourth straight conference loss. St. Thomas, meanwhile, locked up one of the six MIAC playoff berths, while remaining atop the conference standings with a perfect 7-0 mark.

SMU returns to action next Wednesday, playing host to St. Catherine in the first of four straight home matches to close out the regular season.