SAINT PETER, Minn. — After 15-straight road matches, the Gustavus volleyball team finally returned to Gus Young Court, and showed up in impressive fashion, defeating Carleton 3-1 Friday night.
In front of an electric crowd, the Gusties got off to a quick start, racing to an early lead of 7-0 over the Knights in the first set. The Gusties built their lead to as many as 14 points, 23-9, before settling for a 25-11 victory.
Set two started in favor of the Knights, as they jumped out to the first lead, 3-0, early in the set. Unfazed, the Gusties made up ground to eventually build their lead over the course of the set before concluding with a 25-16 victory.
The Knights turned on the offense in the third set, scoring 14 of the set’s first 20 points. The Gusties couldn’t recover from their early deficit, falling to the Knights in set three by a score of 25-16. On the heels of that loss, the Gusties produced a convincing response, cruising to a set four victory of 25-20.
The tandem of Marlee Turn (Jr., Kennedy) and Sarah Elliott (Sr., Lombard, Ill.) led the Gusties’ offensive attack against the Knights, hammering out 18 and 10 kills respectively. Kasie Tweet (Jr., Adrian) dished out 44 of the team’s 47 assists, while Brynn Smith (So., Brooklyn Park) tallied a team-best 20 digs. Turn added 12 digs of her own for her team-leading eighth double-double, while Tweet added 13 digs for her sixth double-double of the season.
The No. 20 Gusties host the Gustavus Triangular Saturday, inviting Bethel and Dubuque to Saint Peter for a series of three matches. The Gusties square off against the Royals at 1:30 p.m. followed by a 5:30 p.m. non-conference matchup against the Spartans.