MINNEAPOLIS, Minn. – The St. Olaf College volleyball team improved to 5-2 in five set matches this season with a 13-25, 25-19, 25-17, 22-25, 15-7 victory over Minnesota Intercollegiate Athletic Conference (MIAC) foe Augsburg University on Saturday night at Si Melby Hall.
After a slow start in the first set, St. Olaf (21-7, 8-2 MIAC) took the next two sets, but Augsburg (9-15, 4-6 MIAC) won the fourth set to force a decider. In the fifth, the Oles hit .450 with 10 kills and just one attack error to claim their second five-set win in as many nights and edge closer to securing the No. 2 seed in the MIAC Playoffs.
Senior
Maren Miller was in double figures in kills for the ninth time this season with 13 kills while hitting an even .500. Senior
Evelyn Kreft hit .524 with 11 kills and zero errors, while senior
Lilah Van Scoyoc tallied eight kills. First year
Karli Torhorst had season highs with seven kills and 14 assists, while senior
Michaela Dooley recorded 28 digs for the second match in a row.
After five early ties, Augsburg won five consecutive points to take a 10-5 lead and won 20 of the final 28 points of the opening set. The Oles fell behind 4-1 to start the second but won the next six points, including a pair of aces by first year
Kaela Clerveaux, to take a lead they would hold onto. Dooley had eight digs in the second set to help St. Olaf limit Augsburg to a .133 hitting percentage.
Kreft had four kills on five swings as the Oles hit .294 in the third set on their way to a two-sets-to-one advantage. St. Olaf opened the set on a 10-4 run and led by at least three for the rest of the set. The Oles were within reach of a four-set win with an 18-15 lead in the fourth before the Auggies went on a 7-1 run as part of a 10-4 close to the set.
Miller's three kills on five swings helped St. Olaf get across the line in the fifth. Already leading 7-4, the Oles put together a 7-1 run to extend their lead to 13-5. Four points later, Torhorst ended the match with her seventh kill of the night.
St. Olaf will end the regular season with a home tri-match against the College of St. Scholastica (3 p.m.) and Wartburg College (7 p.m.) on Saturday, Nov. 7. The Oles will celebrate their senior class prior to the 3 p.m. match against the Saints.
