NORTHFIELD, Minn. – The St. Olaf College volleyball team used a balanced attack to sweep the No. 5-ranked College of Saint Benedict by scores of 25-22, 25-23, 25-22 in Minnesota Intercollegiate Athletic Conference (MIAC) play on Saturday afternoon at Skoglund Center.

Junior Summer Reid paced St. Olaf (21-3, 4-2 MIAC) with 11 kills, while senior Lauren Rewers and sophomore Katelyn Lannom each added 10. The win over Saint Benedict (17-3, 4-2 MIAC) was the first for the Oles since a five-set victory on Nov. 4, 2010.

Prior to Saturday, the Bennies had not been swept in their last 71 matches, dating back to a 3-0 defeat to St. Thomas on Sept. 20, 2017. The win was St. Olaf's first against a top-five opponent since a four-set victory over No. 4 Elmhurst on Oct. 26, 2001.

In addition to the three Oles in double figures in kills, first year Nicole Banitt tallied nine kills while hitting .389 and junior Morgan Marxer added seven. Junior Lexi Wall assisted on 43 of St. Olaf's 49 kills in the victory and registered 10 digs. Junior Jordan Melz and senior Emily Jarnigan were both in double figures in digs with 10 and 19, respectively.

Back-to-back aces by Lannom gave St. Olaf a 10-7 edge early in the opening set, but Saint Benedict later claimed an 18-17 lead with a 4-1 run. Reid recorded kills to bookend a 4-0 run that gave the Oles a lead they would not relinquish at 21-18. The Bennies closed the gap to one point twice late on before an attack error by CSB and a Lannom kill sealed the set for St. Olaf, 25-22.

The teams traded runs early in the second set before Saint Benedict won four-straight points to open up an 18-16 lead. Trailing 20-17, the Oles recorded kills on five-straight points to go up, 22-20, before the Bennies regrouped to tie the set at 23-23. A kill off the block by Banitt brought up set point and Rewers finished off the set with a kill to finish off a set in which the Oles hit .317 with 20 kills.

St. Olaf built a 13-7 advantage in the third but Saint Benedict battled back with a 6-0 run to even the set at 13-13. Four attack errors by the Bennies aided a 6-2 run by the Oles that gave St. Olaf a 21-18 cushion. From there, the two teams alternated points the rest of the way, with Reid providing the clinching point with a kill on match point.

The Oles hit at least .256 in all three sets on their way to hitting .291 for the match, while the Bennies hit at a .212 clip. Gabby Heying recorded a match-high 14 kills for Saint Benedict, which got 11 kills from Hunter Weiss and nine from Madison Weiss.

St. Olaf is off for a week until a trip to Winona, Minn. to face Saint Mary's on Saturday, Oct. 19 at 3 p.m.