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After winning both matches on day one of its home tournament, the St. Catherine University volleyball team was looking for a clean sweep on the second day but fell short as the Wildcats dropped a heartbreaking five-set decision to Luther College on Saturday afternoon at the Butler Center.
 
Despite starting the day with a big three-set win over Bethany Lutheran (25-10, 25-22, 25-15), the Wildcats weren't able to eliminate attacking errors or find an answer for the Norse's stellar blocking in the 3-2 loss (25-22, 25-22, 25-19, 26-24, 16-14). The Wildcats hit into 13 total blocks against Luther and had 32 errors.
 
The Wildcats finished the weekend with a strong performance overall, going 3-1 on the weekend to improve to 7-6 on the season.
 
The offensive attack for the Wildcats for the weekend was led by Brittni Wangerin (Prior Lake, Minn.), who had a match high 18 kills against Luther, bringing her total to 45 in the four matches. She finished the second day of competition with 31 kills, 29 digs, 5 assists, 5 serving aces and a block.
 
Fellow seniors Marie O'Neil (St. Michael, Minn.) and Stephanie Meschke (Faribault, Minn.) finished the weekend with 31 kills a piece, while O'Neil compiled 12 total blocks in four matches. Meschke also had the second-highest kills total Saturday with 17.
 
First-year Miranda Krenske (Faribault, Minn.) also played a big role in the Wildcats' weekend performance as she finished with 16 kills, four block assists, one solo block and one dig. Senior libero Nicole Pothen (Faribault, Minn.) led the Wildcats on defense with a total of 86 digs on the weekend, picking up 43 each of the two days.
 
Though setting duties were split all weekend, sophomore Jordyn Wentland (Blaine, Minn.) finished the weekend with a team-leading 86 assists. She had 36 on the day and also chipped in seven digs, four aces and a kill.
 
Throughout the day, the Wildcats continued to rely on strong serving to help them find success against two tough opponents. As a team, St. Kate's knocked down 15 serving aces against Bethany Lutheran and Luther.
 
The Wildcats take a break from tournament action and return to Minnesota Intercollegiate Athletic Conference (MIAC) competition on Wednesday, Sept. 19. The Wildcats will travel to Winona, Minn., to take on Saint Mary's University before returning home for two-straight MIAC matches against Concordia College and Augsburg College Sept. 22 and 26, respectively.
 
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