SAINT PETER, Minn. – The Gustavus volleyball team played host to No. 18 St. Thomas on Wednesday night and fell to the Tommies 3-1. With the loss the Gusties fall to 10-9 overall and 3-2 in the MIAC while the Tommies move to 17-3 overall and 5-0 in conference play.
On Holtan, Head Coach Rachelle Sherden said, “Kate getting her 1,000 kill is a really great achievement. Since her freshman year she’s been an integral part of our offense and it’s something she’s worked really hard for and that she deserves.”
In the first set of the match, the Gusties fell behind the Tommies early on and could never overcome the deficit as they trailed nearly the entire set. With the Gusties trailing 11-8, Kate Holtan (Jr., Rochester) recorded her third kill of the match and the 1,000th of her career, becoming the 15th player to wear the Black and Gold to join the 1,000 kill club. The Gusties were able to bring the set within three late but three straight points for the Tommies ended the game.
In set two Gustavus jumped out to an early 3-0 lead but were quickly overcome by the Tommies who took 11 of the next 13 points to go up 11-5. The Gusties would respond and eventually pull the St. Thomas lead within one at 19-18 but the Tommies would score three straight to gain a 22-18 edge. The two teams would then trade points late as St. Thomas took the set 25-22.
Set three looked to be the most one-sided set of them all as the Tommies went on a few runs to take an early lead that they would build on. Late in the set the Tommies went on a 6-1 run to extend their lead to 24-17 and it looked like the match was all but over. Gustavus though, battled back, with Holtan notching three kills and the Tommies making five errors as the Gusties took the set 26-24.
In set four the Gusties were able to jump out to a 7-4 lead early but six straight Tommie points would put them into a lead they wouldn’t look back on. They extened their lead to 18-13 and eventually 22-15 before taking the set 25-21.
“I think in the third set we did what we had been trying to do by getting them out of system and Sydney [Olson] (Fy., Willmar) was really aggressive with her serve which helped us get back into it,” said Sherden. “It was fun to see us compete and get after it and I told them after the game it was something be proud of and hold onto, but I told them it was a missed opportunity because we didn’t start playing like that until that moment. In the first two sets we weren’t really playing with a lot of grit or within the game plan we had talked about so it was kind of too little too late, but it was awesome to see them come back at that point.”
Holtan led the Gustie attack with 16 kills, while Sarah Elliott (Fy., Lombard, Ill.) totaled 12. Olson had a strong game at the net with six kills and seven blocks, while Hailey Embacher (Jr., Mankato) notched 18 digs in the back row. Kaylyn Johnston (Fy., Urbana, Ill.) handled a bulk of the setting duties with 34 assists.
The Gusties are next in action Friday when they head to UW-Whitewater for three matches, their first being Friday at 6:30.
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One response to “Holtan Notches 1,000th Kill as Volleyball falls to St. Thomas”
was a great match congrates to Kate