MOORHEAD, Minn. – The Gustavus volleyball team claimed a key road win Friday night as it defeated Concordia in a five-set thriller by scores of 22-25, 25-14, 25-17, 27-29 and 15-10. With the win, the Gusties extend their record win streak to 22 and improve to 22-2 overall and 8-0 in the MIAC.
Alyssa Taylor (Sr., Trimont, Minn.) led the Gusties on the attack with 16 kills. Taylor Trautman (Jr., Hutchinson, Minn.) and Lauren Hanson (Fy., Redwood Falls, Minn.) also reached double figures in kills with 12 and 10, respectively. Trautman notched a double-double with 15 digs as well. Nora Holtan (Fy., Rochester, Minn.) distributed 47 assists to direct to Gustie offense and dug out 12 attacks for a double-double. On the back line, Brittany Luethmers (Fy., Prior Lake, Minn.) recorded a season-high 36 digs. Abby Leitch (So. Mankato, Minn.) was also a major contributor on the defensive side with 20 digs. As a team, the Gusties tallied a season-high 186 attempts on the attack and 105 digs.
“We played slow and reactive in set one,” Head Coach Rachelle Sherden said. “We came out with tough serves and were more aggressive at the net in set two. The team responded well in the fifth set. In set four we were down by a lot and came all the way back to lose by two in extra points. That set the tone for the fifth set.”
The first set featured 11 ties and six lead changes, resulting in an 18-16 lead for the Cobbers to force a Gustavus timeout. The Gusties battled to within one point, but Concordia closed out the set on a kill for a three-point win.
Gustavus responded well in the second set and jumped out to a comfortable 14-5 advantage. The Cobbers were unable to overcome the large deficit and never strung more than two consecutive points together throughout the set as the Gusties cruised to an 11-point victory to tie the match 1-1.
The third set was a back-and-forth battle with the two squads playing within two points of each other for the majority of the set. But the Gusties used a 9-2 run to close out the set for an eight-point victory.
The Gusties carried their momentum into the fourth set and led 7-5 early on, but the Cobbers answered with a 9-1 run to take a 14-8 lead. The Black and Gold battled back and eventually took the lead late in the set three times at 23-22, 25-24 and 26-25, but was unable to take set point. Concordia then closed out the frame with four of the final five points to force a deciding fifth set.
The Gusties took the first three points in the fifth and never looked back. Concordia was within one point at 6-5, but Gustavus finished it off with a 9-5 run to take the set and the match.
Gustavus concludes its final road trip of the regular season Saturday at the College of Saint Benedict. First serve is slated for 3 p.m. in St. Joseph, Minn.