Box Score 1 |
Box Score 2 |
Day 1 Recap |
UW-Eau Claire Tournament Site |
After a difficult first day at the UW-Eau Claire Labor Day Invite, the St. Catherine University volleyball team recovered in a huge way by picking up two four-set wins over UW-Stout and Martin Luther on Saturday.
“We rebounded nicely today, winning both matches in four sets,” said Head Coach
Corey Phelps. “Overall, it was a good day. Our serving finally came around as did out blocking and defense.”
As a team, the Wildcats totaled 18 service aces on the day, a dramatic improvement from yesterday's total of five. Defensively, they also came up with 27 blocks and 119 digs.
Leading the way were seniors
Brittni Wangerin (Prior Lake, Minn.) and
Stephanie Meschke (Faribault, Minn.) who both pulled in All-Tournament team honors for their strong day two performances. Wangerin finished the tournament with 53 kills and 51 blocks, while Meschke also knocked down 31 kills and helped on the defensive front.
In the first match of the day versus UW-Stout, the Wildcats looked as if they might still be haunted by yesterday's performance as they dropped the first set to the Blue Devils 22-25.
However, the Wildcats came roaring back and took the next three sets to seal the team's first win of the season. Wangerin turned in her strongest performance of the tournament with 16 kills, 24 digs and three service aces. Fellow senior
Marie O'Neil (St. Michael, Minn.) also stepped up in a big way by chipping in nine kills, four digs and two blocks.
All three setters for the Wildcats saw playing time and each delivered strong numbers.
Jordyn Wentland (Blaine, Minn.) set up here teammates with 18 assists, while
Ashley Kahlow (Le Sueur, Minn.) and
Karsee Knutson (New London, Minn.) recorded 15 and 12 assists, respectively.
In the second match of the day, the Wildcats dropped the third set of the match to Martin Luther 27-25, but managed to bounce back in the fourth to win 25-20.
Wangerin again led the offensive strike for the Wildcats with 18 kills, nine digs and a service ace. First-year
Miranda Krenske (Faribault, Minn.) and Meschke each contributed 8 kills, while Kahlow delivered 24 assists and three services aces.
Collectively, the Wildcats came up with 17 total blocks again Martin Luther. O'Neil dominated at the net with seven block assists and one solo block, while Meschke did her share with five block assists.
Nicole Pothen (Faribault, Minn.) led the Wildcats in the digs department with 20 in the final match of the tournament.
The Wildcats finished the tournament 2-2 to open the 2012 season. They return to action next weekend with four matches at the Bathany Lutheran Tournament in Mankato, Minn., beginning with the home team on Friday, Sept. 7, at 4 p.m.
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