NORTHFIELD, Minn. – The St. Olaf College volleyball team was swept by Bethel University by scores of 25-18, 25-19, 25-19 in Minnesota Intercollegiate Athletic Conference (MIAC) play on Wednesday night at Skoglund Center.
Bethel (14-4, 1-0 MIAC) used a balanced offensive attack with three Royals in double figures in kills to sweep St. Olaf (10-5, 1-1 MIAC) and deal the Oles a rare sweep on their home court. Prior to Wednesday, St. Olaf, which received votes in the American Volleyball Coaches Association (AVCA) national poll this week, had not been swept in 22 home matches dating back to a loss to St. Catherine University on Oct. 16, 2024.
Senior
Maren Miller led St. Olaf with 10 kills, four digs, and three total blocks, while senior
Evelyn Kreft had nine kills. Junior
Mehsa Krause tallied seven kills, 10 digs, and one ace. Junior
Kailani Schroeder compiled a double-double of 18 assists, 13 digs, and one ace, while senior
Michaela Dooley racked up 24 digs, two assists, and an ace in the three-set match.
The Oles hit just .149 as a team in the match, compared to .237 for the Royals. Bethel also had six aces and just one service error.
Miller tallied five kills in the opening set for St. Olaf, but Bethel broke a 4-4 tie with a 3-0 run and held the lead for the rest of the set. Kreft got going in the second with five kills, but the Oles hit jut .047 in the set to fall in a two-sets-to-none deficit. Bethel completed the sweep by registering 19 kills and just three attack errors to hit .327 in the third.
St. Olaf will host Concordia-Moorhead (3 p.m.) and Simpson College (7 p.m.) on Friday, Oct. 2. The Cobbers and Storm will play in between those two matches.
