ST. PAUL, Minn. – Senior
Megan Grimes and junior
Lauren Rewers combined for 24 kills as the St. Olaf College volleyball team won its ninth consecutive match by sweeping Macalester College by scores of 25-13, 25-15, 25-10 in a Minnesota Intercollegiate Athletic Conference (MIAC) matchup on Saturday afternoon at the Leonard Center.
Rewers tallied a match-high 13 kills, while Grimes added 11 to help St. Olaf (13-1, 3-0 MIAC) hit .384 in the match. The sweep of Macalester (7-9, 0-3 MIAC) was the Oles' seventh during their nine-match winning streak and the team's 10th among their 13 victories this season.
Rewers reached double figures in kills for the 10th time this season, while Grimes did so for the ninth time for the Oles. The pair combined to hit .409 in the victory with just six errors on 44 swings.
First-year
Brynne Gray recorded her second-straight double-double with 32 assists and 11 digs, while also adding three aces. Junior
Abigail Wiedel posted a season-high nine digs, while classmate
Haley Langeslag had eight.
After Macalester won two of the first three points of the opening set, the Oles won the next nine to go up 10-2, with senior
Alison Curry contributing three kills during the run. The Scots cut their deficit to four, 11-7, only for St. Olaf to build a comfortable 19-8 lead by winning eight of the next nine points.
The OIes rattled off the first eight points of the second set to take command early, with Grimes tallying three kills during the run on Gray's serve to start the set. St. Olaf led by at least six the rest of the set and closed out the second on consecutive kills from Rewers.
A 6-0 run turned a 3-1 Macalester lead into a 7-3 St. Olaf advantage early in the third set. The Scots trailed just 12-9 midway through the set until the Oles won seven-straight points, again on Gray's serve, to go up by 10. After leading 12-9, St. Olaf won 13 of the final 14 points of the third set to finish off the sweep.
Next up for St. Olaf is a trip to St. Thomas on Wednesday, Sept. 26 for a 7 p.m. showdown with the Tommies.
