Box Score  | GameDay Preview

WINONA, Minn. — It was bound to happen sooner or later — and Saturday was the day.

For the first time in the Saint Mary's University volleyball team's first 17 matches, the Cardinals were extended to a fifth set against Concordia.

Unfortunately for SMU, the "veteran" Cobbers — owners of two five-set wins in three tries this season — rattled off the first six points of the decisive final set and the Cardinals never recovered, falling 15-9 to drop the conference decision to Concordia 3-2.

"It was certainly a tough way for a great match like that to end," said SMU coach Mike Lester. "I thought we played very well — definitely better than we did Friday night (in a 3-0 loss to 12th-ranked Saint Benedict).

"We hadn't played a five set match yet this year, and it showed — (Concordia) got off to a quick start, and we just couldn't crawl out of that early hole."

The two teams traded set wins through the first four sets, with SMU winning Sets 1 and 3 — 25-18 and 25-21 — while Concordia took sets 2 and 4 by identical 25-20 scores.

Trailing 6-0 in the fifth set, SMU's Lexi Assimos (Northbrook, Ill.) served up three straight points to get the Cardinals within three, 6-3, but the Cobbers answered with a three-point run of their own to make it 9-3 — and Concordia never looked back in winning its third straight match.

Kenzie Lind (Rushford, Minn.) recorded a career-high 17 kills for the Cardinals, while Alex Peterson (Harmony, Minn.) finished with 13. Assimos tallied 44 assists and shared the team lead in digs (18) with Lex Krogstad (Chicago, Ill.). Lind, Jordan Wolfe (Wabasha, Minn.) and Brooke Schilling (Altura, Minn.) all chipped in 12 digs for SMU, while Assimos delivered a team-best three aces.

Kynndyl Ross led a trio of Cobbers with 10 or more kills, finishing with 14, while Angie Waller and Kayla Hampton each tallied 10. Jena Klaphake and Mandy Mercil shared the setting details, recording 26 and 24 assists, respectively, with Alyssa Schmidt compiling a match-high 25 digs.

The Cardinals (1-3 MIAC, 12-5 overall) are right back in action — and right back on their home court — on Wednesday, as SMU hosts Carleton in a 7 p.m. conference match at the SMU Gym.