SAN ANTONIO, Texas – The No. 7 Gustavus volleyball team opened its 2018 season Friday by splitting a pair of matches at the Trinity National Invitational. The Gusties swept UW-Stevens Point 3-0 and then dropped a matchup of nationally ranked teams to No. 11 Trinity 3-1.
Gustavus 3, UW-Stevens Point 0 | BOX SCORE
Gustavus made quick work of the Pointers in the season-opener, winning 25-21, 25-14, 25-19. The Gusties trailed early in the first set, but a 9-4 run gave them a 17-15 lead and they never trailed the rest of the way. UW-Stevens Point tied the score twice, but the Gusties were able to close out the opening frame.
The Black and Gold once again found themselves trailing in the second set before a 12-2 hot streak propelled them in front for good. The Gusties never trailed in a tightly-contested third set to complete the shutout.
Kate Holtan (So., Rochester, Minn.) led the offense with 13 kills and a .273 attack percentage. Nora Holtan (Sr., Rochester, Minn.) directed the floor with 33 assists. Brittany Luethmers (Sr., Prior Lake, Minn.) led the defense with 12 digs.
The Gusties hit at a .223 clip and limited the Pointers offense to a -.020 percentage.
Trinity 3, Gustavus 1 | BOX SCORE
The second match of the day did not go as well for the Gusties as they lost 25-13, 23-25, 26-24, 25-23.
Trinity got off to a quick start in the opening frame with an 8-2 lead and never looked back. The Gusties bounced back in set two after trailing for a majority of the frame. Trinity gained a 9-6 advantage before the Gusties put together an 8-5 run to tie the game. Trailing 21-20, the Black and Gold rattled off three-straight points and then two of the next four to claim a two-point decision.
The third set was a true back-and-forth affair with eight lead changes. The Gusties held set-point at 24-23, but the home squad was able to string three points together to complete the comeback decision. And in the fourth set, an early 11-3 run by the Tigers gave them a comfortable lead, but the Gusties clawed back to tie the score at 23-23. The visitors were unable to pull off the comeback, though, dropping the last two points.
Lauren Hanson (Sr., Redwood Falls, Minn.) and Hanna Albers (Sr., St. Louis, Mo.) led the attack with 14 and 12 kills, respectively. Nora Holtan finished with 42 assists and Luethmers dug out 19 attacks.
Trinity was efficient on the attack, hitting at a .250 clip, while the Gusties connected at a .160 rate.
“I was glad to see the grit of coming back in the fourth after being down by 11 points,” Head Coach Rachelle Sherden said. “Now we work on making adjustments faster and controlling our unforced errors.”
Gustavus wraps up play at the Trinity Invite Saturday with two more matches. The Gusties take on Aurora at 11 a.m. and Cabrini at 1:30 p.m.