By DONNY NADEAU
Saint Mary's Sports Information Director
 
WINONA, Minn. — Getting out of the starting blocks was not a problem for the Saint Mary's University volleyball team in its nonconference match against UW-Stout Wednesday evening.
 
Outsprinting the Blue Devils down the stretch, on the other hand, was a different story — one that did not have a happy ending for the Cardinals.
 
UW-Stout displayed its closing kick in all three sets — scoring three of the final four points in the first set, before using a 3-0 run to win set two and a 2-0 burst to seal the win in the third set — as the Blue Devils dealt the Cardinals a 3-0 setback at the Saint Mary's Gym.
 
Saint Mary's rallied from a seven-point deficit in the opening set to pull even, 22-22, only to have UW-Stout record three of the set's final four points for a 25-23 victory.
 
The Cardinals again found themselves deadlocked at 22-22 in the second set, and again the Blue Devils took control late, rattling off three unanswered points for the 25-22 win.
 
UW-Stout then completed the sweep, closing the set on a 7-4 run — including the set's final two points — in posting a second straight 25-22 victory.
 
 Lexi Barth (Byron, Minn.) delivered a team-high nine kills, two more than Daynalyn Jostock, while Lillian Braun (Mantorville, Minn.) dished out 30 assists, and Linnaea Wallis (Dresser, Wis.) and DeJaye Baab (Wabasha, Minn.) chipped in 17 and 12 digs, respectively, to pace the Cardinals.
 
Lexie Nelson led a balanced UW-Stout attack with eight kills, whileadding 13 assists. Jessica Duval chipped in a team-high 15 assists and Kara Simonson finished with 23 digs.
 
The Cardinals (2-3 overall) are now off until Sept. 13 and 14, when they take to the road for the first time this season, traveling to Ripon, Wis., to take part in the Ripon Red Hawk Invitational. Saint Mary's will face Marian (5 p.m.) and MSOE (7 p.m.) on Sept. 13, before squaring off against Beloit (noon), and host Ripon (2 p.m.) the following afternoon.