SAINT PETER, Minn. – The Gustavus volleyball team hosted Northwestern Saturday for homecoming and lost the match 3-0. With the loss the Gusties fall to 8-8 overall while the Eagles move to 9-4.
After the Gusties got out to a 2-1 lead to start the first set, the Eagles took over for a majority of the set, getting out to a 15-7 and then 22-18 lead. The Gusties were able to even things at 23 but consecutive Gustavus errors ended the set.
Set two was much of the same as the Eagles controlled the duration of the set. The Eagles held leads of 12-6 and eventually held as big of a lead as 23-16 before the Gusties battled back to bring the score within two at 23-21. However, the Eagles would close out the set taking two of the last three points.
In set three, the two teams played back and forth for a majority of the set. After falling behind 14-10, the Gusties used an 8-0 run to climb to a lead of 18-14. The Eagles would eventually even things at 20, before taking five of the last six points to claim the set, and victory.
Kate Holtan (Jr., Rochester) and Sarah Elliott (Fy., Lombard, Ill.) led the Gusties with nine kills each. Kaylyn Johnston (Fy., Urbana, Ill.) led Gustavus with 17 set assists while Hailey Embacher (Jr., Mankato) had 16 digs. The Eagles hit .225 in the contest while the Gusties hit at a clip of .187.
The Gusties will next be in action on Wednesday when they host St. Catherine for a 7 p.m. contest.