No. 1 Eagles, No. 3 Cougars win UMAC volleyball semifinals in thrilling fashion
ST. PAUL, Minn.---The Upper Midwest Athletic Conference (UMAC) volleyball tournament semifinal round Wednesday had excitement all around as No. 1 University of Northwestern was tested by No. 4 College of St. Scholastica before emerging with a 3-1 victory, while No. 3 University of Minnesota Morris upset No.2 University of Wisconsin-Superior 3-2 to set up a familiar championship rematch between the Eagles and Cougars Saturday.
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Tournament Site |
Semifinal 1 Recap |
Semifinal 2 Recap |
No. 1 Northwestern def. No. 4 St. Scholastica, 3-1 (26-28, 25-19, 25-11, 25-9) |
Box Score |
Coming off a dominant quarterfinal win Monday, No. 4 St. Scholastica was hoping to knock off the Eagles for a chance at the championship match. Earlier in the season, the Saints managed to take a set from No. 1 Northwestern, but couldn't string together enough for a win.
The momentum from Monday's win carried over to Wednesday for the Saints as they opened up the match with a 28-26 first-set win. The Saints were up 20-16 and looked to be headed for a quick win, but the Eagles roared back and took a 24-23 lead before the Saints managed to comeback for the victory.
In set two, the Eagles slowed built up a lead and managed to keep enough distance from the Saints before closing out the set 25-19 to even the match at one set a side. The momentum then shifted in favor of the Eagles in set three as they took the first five points of the set before cruising to a 25-11 win to go up 2-1. The Eagles closed out the match with a 25-9 victory to clinch their sport in the championship final Saturday at home at 7 p.m.
Mariah Halvorsen led the Eagles offensively with 21 kills and 15 digs. Jenay Fuglestad, Hope Kapelke and Anna Gasch also recorded double figures in kills to add to the Eagle offense. Sydney Schwitters fueled the offense with 53 assists, while Kalley Schwitters picked up a match-high 25 digs. Brooke Schermann led the Saints with 12 kills and added 15 digs. Taylor Thompson was the top defender with 23 digs.
No. 3 Minnesota Morris def. No. 2 Wisconsin-Superior, 3-2 (25-19, 21-25, 21-25, 25-16, 15-11) |
Box Score |
During the regular season, No. 2 Wisconsin-Superior and No. 3 Minnesota Morris each picked up a win over the other but it didn't come easy as the Yellowjackets won the first match in five sets and Cougars closed out the regular season with a four-set win. The semifinal between the two matched the intensity of the first two matches as it needed five to be decided.
The Cougars jumped out to an early lead in the first set going up by as much as 7-2 in the early going. The Yellowjackets tried to inch closer, but the Cougars held on for a 25-19 win to go up 1-0 in the match.
The momentum shifted quickly, though, when the Yellowjackets came out strong in the second. Down 14-11, the Cougars rattled off five-straight points to go up 16-14. The teams then exchanged points until 18-20 when the Yellowjackets scored eight of the next nine points to take the set and even the match at 1-1.
Into the third, the Yellowjackets got the Cougars even more out of rhythm and forced them to hit -.056 in the third set. The Cougars still managed to hang close, but the Yellowjackets eventually came out on top 25-21 to go up 2-1. The fourth set saw the Cougars jump out to a six-point lead at 11-5 and they never looked back en route to a 25-16 win that forced the fifth and final set.
In the final set, the two teams came out strong with neither gaining more than a one-point advantage until after the change of sides. At 8-8, the Cougars scored the next four points to go up 12-8 before eventually claiming the set 15-11 for the win.
Tori Everson led the Cougars with a 19-kill, 10-dig double-double effort. Brenna Tinjum and Rachel Mathias each tallied double figures in kills to add to the offensive success, while Layne Herrmann set her team up for success with 54 assists. Alyssa Ukestad anchored the defense with 30 digs.
For the Yellowjackets, Taylor Howe had a match-high 20 kills and Cami Sletta and Ashlee Bayer hit in double figures. Emily VerWay added 50 assists, 17 digs and two blocks, while Karlie Leaf picked up 24 digs on the defensive side.
Playoff Schedule
Quarterfinal Round – Monday, Oct. 29
No. 4 St. Scholastica def. No. 5 Bethany Lutheran, 3-0 |
Box Score |
BLC Recap |
CSS Recap |
Semifinal Round – Wednesday, Oct. 31
No. 1 Northwestern def. No. 4 St. Scholastica, 3-1 |
Box Score |
CSS Recap |
UNW Recap |
No. 3 Minnesota Morris def. No. 2 Wisconsin-Superior, 3-2 |
Box Score |
UMM Recap | UWS Recap |
Championship – Saturday, Nov. 3
No. 3 Minnesota Morris at No. 1 Northwestern, St. Paul, Minn., 7 p.m. |
Live Stats |
Live Video |
Ticket Information
All UMAC postseason events have the following set admissions prices: Adults, $10; college students and seniors, $5; youth (Age 6-18), $5; age 5 and under, FREE. Any UMAC students, faculty and staff are free with a valid and current institutional ID. No other passes will be accepted.
All tournament information including scores, recaps, team information and more can be found on the UMAC Volleyball Tournament page. Keep up with all of the tournament action on Twitter and Instagram using #UMACchamp.