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WINONA, Minn. — Mike Lester is as competitive as they come, and moral victories aren't exactly what the Saint Mary's University volleyball coach Mike Lester is known for.

But when his team came out on the short end of a 3-2 Minnesota Intercollegiate Athletic Conference decision to league-leading Bethel Wednesday night, it was pretty hard for the Cardinal head coach to feel too bad about his team's performance.

After all, it may have been one of their best of the season — especially in the fifth and decisive final set.

“We've always said that all we can control is how we play — and that we need to make sure that we go out and play at a high level from start to finish,” Lester said. “And tonight, we had some moments when we weren't as good as we should be, but there were many more moments when we played as well as we've played all season.

“You hate to lose a match like that, but we played great — Bethel was just a little better.”

The Cardinals raced out to a 6-2 lead in the opening set, but after Bethel tied the set 6-6, neither team would lead by more than two the rest of the way, with SMU collecting the final two points to record a 25-23 victory.

From there, however, the Royals took control, racing to a 19-9 lead in cruising to a 24-14 win in Set 2 to even the match at 1-1. The Royals would take a 2-1 lead with another convincing win in the third set, 25-20.

With all the momentum on the Royals' side, the Cardinals reverted to their Set 1 selves in the fourth set, outlasting Bethel 25-22 to force a fifth set.

And what a fifth set it was. Bethel led 6-3 early, but the Cardinals rattled off three straight points to tie things a 6-6, and neither team would lead by more than one the rest of the way, with the Royals finally putting together back-to-back points for the match-clinching 22-20 win.

“That fifth set might have been some of the best volleyball played on this campus in a long, long time,” said Lester. “Both teams were playing at such a high level — it was an amazing display.

“It was really nice to see us bounce back after the second and third sets,” Lester added. “We had a bit of an emotional letdown (after the first set) and (Bethel) took  advantage. But we regrouped and got the job done in the fourth set and came up just short in the fifth set.

“Most of the time, we tell the team as soon as the match is over to let it go and focus on the next one — but this is one that they should hang on to for a little bit. It was a great, great match.”

Kara Grant (Peosta, Iowa) led the way for the Cardinals, collecting 20 kills, while Mary Nordick (Plymouth, Minn.) added 15 and hit .538. Lexi Assimos (Northbrook, Ill.) recorded 49 assists, while Tara Rasmussen (Kasson, Minn.) led five players with 10 or more digs, finishing with 23.

The Cardinals (1-6 MIAC, 13-10 overall) are back in action this weekend, traveling to Naperville, Ill., to take part in the North Central Tournament.