ST. PAUL, Minn. — There was nothing easy about the Saint Mary's University of Minnesota volleyball team's Minnesota Intercollegiate Athletic Conference match against Hamline.
 
But then, it doesn't really matter to coach Mike Lester how the Cardinals win, as long as they get the job done.
 
Which is exactly what Saint Mary's did Wednesday, outlasting the Pipers 3-1 in a key conference match at Hutton Arena.
 
The Cardinals—winners of three straight and four of their last five—opened the match with a pair of nail-biting wins in the first two sets, edging the Pipers 25-22 and 25-23, respectively, to take a 2-0 advantage.
 
The Pipers shifted the momentum in Set 3 with a convincing 25-17 win, but Saint Mary's was back to its winning ways in the fourth set, dropping Hamline 25-21 to earn the victory.
 
Jenna Sullivan (Woodbury, Minn.) owned a team-best nine kills for the Cardinals, one more Macki Fadness (Eau Claire, Wis.), and Molly Urban (Roseville, Minn.), while Kenzie Lind (Rushford, Minn.) and Mary Nordick (Plymouth, Minn.) each finished with seven. Tayler MacVey (Dodge Center, Minn.) and Brittney Hanson (Janesville, Iowa), meanwhile, boasted 18 and 17 assists, respectively. Lex Krogstad (Chicago, Ill.) recorded a team-best 22 digs—the junior's eighth match of 20 or more digs this season—with Sullivan (15), MacVey (14) and Morgan Thomas (Palos Park, Ill. / 13) also finishing in double figures in digs.
 
The Cardinals (4-3 MIAC, 16-8 overall) step out of conference play one last time this weekend, as Saint Mary's travels to Eau Claire, Wis. to take part in the UW-Eau Claire Invitational. Saint Mary's will face Northwestern and host UW-Eau Claire on Friday, before squaring off against St. Scholastica on Saturday.