ELMHURST, Ill. – After dropping the first set in each of its matches today, the Gustavus volleyball team rallied to win both matches 3-1 and start its season 2-0.
After dropping the first set to Elmhurst 25-19, the Gusties got off to a slow start in set two falling behind 8-4. They then rallied to take a 13-10 lead on a long service from Kate Holtan (Jr., Rochester, Minn.), bookended by kills from Annalee Olson-Sola (So., Northfield, Minn.). The Bluejays would fight back to even the score at 15 before an 8-0 run put the second set into Gustavus’s hands who evened the match at 1-1.
Elmhurst came out strong once again in set three, holding leads of 7-3, 11-5, and 16-13 before the Gusties were able to even things at 17 and then rally to take the set 25-22. In what proved to be the final set, Elmhurst jumped out to another early lead 12-7 before seven straight points turned the tide for Gustavus. With the score tied at 15, the Gusties took 10 of the last 12 points to seal the victory.
In the first match Holtan led the Gusties with 13 kills, while Olson-Sola had 12, and Rhyan Herrmann (Fy., Brownton, Minn.) had 10. Mitaya Johnson (Sr., Kasson, Minn.) had 28 assists in the contest while Kaylyn Johnston (Fy., Urbana, Ill.) recorded 17. Holtan also notched a team-high 23 digs in the match, while Hailey Embacher (Jr., Mankato, Minn.) had 21.
Match two started out similarly for the Gusties as they fell behind 16-8 early and couldn’t climb out of the hole and dropped the set 25-17. On their heels again, the Gusties responded in set number, two jumping out to a 7-0 lead that they would not relinquish in a dominating set they won 25-12. The Black and Gold kept their momentum rolling in set number three as they won the set 25-14 and hit .480 in the process.
With a 2-1 lead the Gusties had to fight for set number four as the Vikings took an early 9-4 lead. Gustavus would then score four straight to pull it within one before Augustana went on an 8-2 run to make it 17-10. On the service of Herrmann though, the Gusties would even it at 17-17, and then take a 21-18 lead after another mini-run. The two teams traded points late but the Gusties held on for the 25-22 win in set four to take home the victory.
In match two Holtan led all players with 15 kills with a .424 attack percentage, while Sarah Elliott (Fy., Lombard, Ill.) had 10. Embacher recorded 19 digs to lead the Black and Gold, while Johnston had a team-high 22 assists to go along 10 digs.
The Gusties will be back in action tomorrow at 10 a.m. and noon with matches against Aurora and North Central.