NAPERVILLE, Ill. — The first two matches of the Tiffany Robinson Memorial Tournament did not go quite as Saint Mary's University of Minnesota volleyball coach Mike Lester was hoping.
 
The Cardinals, coming off a 3-2 conference win over St. Olaf on Wednesday, could not get their offense on track in their first two tournament matches, falling to both host North Central (Ill.) and Coe by identical 3-1 scores.
 
Saint Mary's dropped the first two sets against North Central, 25-19 and 25-16, before regrouping for a 33-31 marathon win in the third set. That, however, would be the only win the Cardinals would must, as North Central closed out the match with a 25-15 Set 4 win.
 
In the nightcap, the Cardinals and Kohawks split the first two sets—Coe winning Set 1, 25-23 and Saint Mary's taking the second set, 25-21. But again, the Cardinals could not muster a second set win, as Coe closed out the match with 25-21 and 25-17 wins.
 
Molly Urban (Roseville, Minn.) led the way for the Cardinals against North Central, collecting 12 kills, while Macki Fadness (Eau Claire, Wis.) chipped in 10. Maddie Hess (Lewiston, Minn.) finished with a team-best 18 assists, with Brittney Hansen (Janesville, Iowa) and Tayler MacVey (Dodge Center, Minn.) chipping in 14 and 11 assists, respectively. Lex Krogstad (Chicago, Ill.) recorded 25 digs and two aces.
 
Fadness recorded her second double-digit kill performance against Coe, finishing with 12 kills, a total matched by teammate Alex Peterson (Harmony, Minn.). Hess and Hanson each recorded 19 assists, and Krogstad and Jenna Sullivan (Woodbury, Minn.) posted 18 and 12 digs, respectively.
 
The Cardinals (16-5 overall) are back in action on Saturday, squaring off aginast 11th-ranked Carthage at 9 a.m. and then going up against the nation's top-ranked team, Washington (Mo.) University at 11 a.m.