WINONA, Minn. – To start their three-match week, the Saint Mary's volleyball team (13-9, 2-2) hosted the Bethany Lutheran Vikings (3-14, 2-2) for nonconference action on Tuesday night. The Cardinals took down the Vikings in four sets, 3-1.
SMU 3, BLC 0
It was quite the opening set one, as the Cardinals started ahead 8-1, aided by opening kills from Kali Olson, Ayla Olson, and service aces from Lavin LeJeune. The Cardinals laid the hammer down, as they never let the Vikings within five the rest of the set. A total of six first-set kills allowed the offense to flourish and take set one, 25-15.Â
In set two, the teams traded points. A kill from Brianna Hanneken behind Ayla Olson's ace started a short run, pulling ahead 11-8. Kinlee Grattan came in to dish an ace and delivered Kaia DePaolo and Ava Berg kills to extend their lead, 20-17. Errors ended set two, 25-18 in favor of the Cardinals.
Trailing 4-1 in the third set, Lindsey Rossow got the Cardinals back on a run with tough serving, pushing them back ahead in no time, 5-4. The offense for the Vikings jumped out of the room in set three, hitting a whopping .400 at the line; it shut down the Cardinals as they fell 25-18.
The Vikings started the same way in set four, jumping out to an early 6-1 lead. The Cardinals pulled the game to 9-9 as errors piled up for the Vikings. DePaolo got the momentum back for the Cardinals, and the Cardinals went ahead for the first time in the set, 14-12. They extended their lead after a long rally and picked apart the Vikings' defense to 18-13, forcing a timeout. Out of the timeout, Kali Olson got to work and put the Cardinals on top, 25-16.
Kali Olson and Ayla Olson each led the team with 12 kills.
Looking Ahead
The Cardinals will continue the week on the road as they look to face Concordia (MN) on Friday, Oct. 16, for a 5:00 p.m. match.
