Upsets highlight second round of UMAC spring volleyball tournament

Upsets highlight second round of UMAC spring volleyball tournament

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ST. PAUL, Minn.---The Upper Midwest Athletic Conference (UMAC) 2021 spring volleyball postseason tournament continued with both brackets in action Thursday with upsets highlighting the night. No. 4 University of Minnesota Morris defeated No. 2 College of St. Scholastica 3-0 (25-18, 25-14, 25-20) to advance to the title game Saturday against No. 1 University of Northwestern.

In the consolation bracket, No. 8 North Central University came up with an impressive 3-0 (25-16, 25-20, 25-18) win over No. 5 Northland College to advance to the consolation championship Saturday. The Rams will travel Saturday to face a No. 6 Bethany Lutheran College squad that took down rival No. 7 Martin Luther College in a 3-2 (27-25, 28-30, 25-23, 23-25, 15-8) marathon win.

Tournament Championship Page |
 
No. 4 Minnesota Morris def. No. 2 St. Scholastica, 3-0 | Box Score | 
Less than a week removed from their previous matchup, the No. 4 Cougars came out strong from the get-go to get revenge over the No. 2 Saints after losing Saturday. This is the second-straight season the Cougars have eliminated the Saints from the UMAC postseason to advance to the title game.  
  • The Cougars put together and impressive hitting performance as a squad with a .368 percentage and just nine total errors in the match. They also added 11 service aces and seven blocks in the win. 
  • Brenna Tinjum led the Cougars with 11 kills and four service aces. McKenzie Newton ran the offense efficiently with a match-high 32 assists, while Alyssa Ukestad led the defensive efforts with 11 digs. 
  • Jessica Remer of the Saints tallied a match-best 13 kills to lead her squad. Katie Brostom had 24 assists and Alcia Draper recorded 10 digs in the losing effort.

No. 8 North Central def. No. 5 Northland, 3-0 | Box Score | 
The No. 5 LumberJills and No. 8 Rams met for the third time this season after each team won a match in five sets. The tournament matchup, though, was much different as the Rams dominated from start to finish to win their third-straight match to move on to the consolation championship. 
  • The Rams hit an impressive .348 as a team while holding the LumberJills to a .135 percentage. North Central committed just six total hitting errors and added five blocks in the win.
  • Jaselyn Anderson tallied a team-high 10 kills on 15 attempts with no errors for a .667 percentage. Alannah Easter dished out 17 assists, while Hallie Fuglestad led with 13 digs. 
  • In the losing effort, Bailey Wynn had a team best nine kills for the Jills with Kennedi Bernia pulling up a match-high 14 digs. Makenna Nelson recorded a match-best 24 assists. 

No. 6 Bethany Lutheran def. No. 7 Martin Luther, 3-2 | Box Score | 
Early in the season the Vikings defeated the rival Knights in quick fashion with a 3-0 win. The tournament atmosphere impacted the second matchup between the two squads as the Vikings and Knights went toe-to-toe in a battle that the Vikings just narrowly pulled off the victory.  
  • The battle between the two squads was highlighted by a strong blocking performance from the Vikings who tallied seven blocks. They also added 10 service aces to help narrowly edge out the Knights.
  • Alexis Morsching highlighted the win for the Vikings with 20 kills and two block assists. Cheyenne Owens tallied a match-high 53 assists to fuel the attack for the Vikings and added 11 digs for the double-double.
  • The Knights were led by Kelsey Birschbach with a 12-kill, 23-dig double-double performance. Kylie Wolf also picked up a double-double with 18 assists and 10 digs. 

TOURNAMENT SCHEDULE
Opening Round – Monday, April 5
  • No. 8 North Central def. No. 9 Crown, 3-0 (25-11, 25-14, 25-23) | Box Score |
 
Semifinal Round – Thursday, April 8
  • No. 2 St. Scholastica def. No. 4 Minnesota Morris, 3-0 (25-18, 25-14, 25-20) | Box Score |
  • No. 8 North Central def. No. 5 Northland, 3-0 (25-16, 25-20, 25-18) | Box Score |
  • No. 6 Bethany Lutheran def. No. 7 Martin Luther, 3-2 (27-25, 28-30, 25-23, 23-25, 15-8) | Box Score |
 
Championship – Saturday, April 10
  • Championship Game -  No. 4 Minnesota Morris at No. 1 Northwestern; St. Paul, Minn., 7 p.m. | Live Stats | Live Video |
  • Consolation Championship Game - No. 8 North Central at No. 6 Bethany Lutheran, 5 p.m. | Live Stats | Live Video |
  • Seventh Place Game - No. 7 Martin Luther at No. 5 Northland, 7 p.m. | Live Stats | Live Video |

SPECTATORS
Spectators will only be allowed at the discretion of each institution. | UMAC Institutional Spectator Policies |
 
Tournament Championship Page