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MINNEAPOLIS, Minn. — Augsburg headed into Thursday's Minnesota Intercollegiate Athletic Conference Playoff semifinal match against the Saint Mary's University volleyball team with all the gaudy credentials: Two-time co-conference regular-season champion, top-seeded in the six-team MIAC Playoffs, and ranked No. 19 in the latest AVCA Top 25.
 
The Cardinals weren't fazed in the least.
 
And if the first set was any indication, this Cardinal-Auggie match-up was going to be a knock-down, drag-out brawl.
 
Which is exactly what it was.
 
Unfortunately for the Cardinals, it was Augsburg that possessed the 1-2 knockout punch—in the form Ashley Peper and Colleen Ourada.
 
Peper hammered out 13 kills and Ourada added 10—and the Auggies rallied from early deficits in all three sets in handing the Cardinals a 3-0 setback at Si Melby Hall.
 
"We knew coming into tonight that we were going to have to play super-clean, and I thought we did—for most of the match," said Saint Mary's coach Mike Lester. "We played very well and had our chances early in each set, we just weren't able to maintain that momentum throughout.
 
"Augsburg is a great team, and you have to tip your cap to them—they played outstanding tonight."
 
Both teams enjoyed playing from out front—Saint Mary's led by as many as three, while the Auggies held a pair of four-point leads—and the opening set saw four ties, including 23-23 and 24-24.
 
It was the Auggies, however, who broke that 24-24 deadlock, rattling off a pair of points to win the first set 26-24.
 
The Cardinals again got out the gates quickly in Set 2, recording four of the first five points—and eight of the first 10—to take an 8-2 advantage.
 
From there, Augsburg turned up the head, as the Auggies used a 9-1 run to grab a 12-10 advantage—a lead they would not relinquish in posting a 25-21 win and a 2-0 advantage.
 
Down—but far from out—Saint Mary's appeared to have shifted the momentum to open the third set, leading 10-7 early. But once again, the Auggies had an answer to the Cardinals' early start, grabbing its first lead as part of a 6-0 run that gave Augsburg a 19-15 advantage.
 
Saint Mary's would get within two, 19-17, but Augsburg would score six of the final eight points to seal the win, 25-19.
 
Jenna Sullivan (Woodbury, Minn.) led the way for the Cardinals, collecting 11 kills and adding 16 digs. Macki Fadness (Eau Claire, Wis.) chipped in seven kills and Mary Nordick (Plymouth, Minn.) and Molly Grover (Zumbrota, Minn.) each finished with six kills. Nordick's fifth kill of the match—late in the second set—would prove to be the most memorable, giving the senior middle hitter 1,000 kills for her illustrious career.
 
With the loss, the Cardinals—making their second straight appearance in the MIAC Playoff semifinal—close out their season with a 20-13 overall record. Augsburg, meanwhile, improves to 23-4 with its 12th straight win and will host the St. Thomas/Saint Benedict winner in Saturday's championship match.