Lauren Hanson on the attack. (Photo: Matt Berkner, Gustavus Sports Information)
ST. PETER, Minn. – The No. 3-seeded Gustavus volleyball team was upset by the No. 6 seed Augsburg University in a 3-1 loss Tuesday evening at Gus Young Court during a Minnesota Intercollegiate Athletic Conference playoff quarterfinal match.
Gustavus 1, Augsburg 3: 25-17, 22-25, 21-25, 18-25 (Box Score)
The Gusties started off the match on the right foot, taking the first set 25-17 over the Auggies while hitting at a rate of .302 prior to the visitors roaring back to take the next three sets. A stout defensive effort by Augsburg hindered the Gustavus attack as the Auggies totaled 12 team blocks and tallied 120 digs.
Gustavus came out strong in the first set, jumping out to a 7-2 early lead to force an Auggie timeout. From then on, the Gusties maintained their lead and didn’t allow Augsburg to come within a four-point deficit.
The second set proved to be a scrappy, back and forth set, seeing four lead changes to set the score at 15-15. From then on, Augsburg closed out the set five-straight points on a 10-7 run. The Gustie offense struggled with eight errors, hitting just .065.
After tying the match, the Auggies maintained the momentum and claimed early leads in which they were able to hold on to in the third and fourth sets to knock the Black and Gold out of the MIAC Playoffs.
Hanna Albers (Jr., St. Louis, Mo.) led the Gustie attack with 17 kills and a .260 attack percentage, while Kate Holtan (Fy., Rochester, Minn.) followed with a double-double, posting 12 kills and 15 digs. Nora Holtan (Jr., Rochester, Minn.) compiled double-double numbers with 39 assists and 16 digs, while Brittany Luethmers (Jr., Prior Lake, Minn.) led the defense with 27 digs.
The No. 13-ranked Gusties, now 23-6 overall, will wait and see if they receive an at-large bid to the NCAA Tournament.