After dropping a five-set heartbreaker to UW-Stout Friday evening, the St. Catherine University volleyball team hoped it could avoid a similar situation on day two of the St. Kate's Invite. Unfortunately, the Wildcats suffered the same fate as they defeated Loras College 3-0 (25-18, 25-18, 25-18), before falling to UW-Superior 3-2 (24-26, 21-25, 25-13, 25-19, 15-12), Saturday in the Butler Center. 

The Wildcats came out with a strong, consistent start to the day against a Loras squad that entered this weekend's tournament 5-3. As a team, the Wildcats hit .239 and were lead by junior Zoe Peterson (Rosemount, Minn.) with 14 kills and four block assists against the Duhawks. She hit an impressive .452 before turning around to post a career-best 16 kills in the five-set loss to UW-Superior. Against the Yellow Jackets, Peterson hit .326 and contributed two block assists to finish the weekend with 43 total kills – therefore earning her all-tournament team honors. 

Setter Karsee Knutson (New London, Minn.) also had a career-high performance against UW-Superior dishing out 31 assists, 17 digs and two kills. She finished the day with 54 assists, 22 digs and three services aces, while Ashley Kahlow (LeSueur, Minn.) dished out 20 in the loss to UW-Superior.

In the second match of the day, the Wildcats came out strong to take the first two sets, but couldn't find a way to close out the win. Despite the loss, several Wildcats contributed in big ways as first-year Maddy Mullins (Caledonia, Minn.) had a career-high 13 kills and added six digs and two service aces. Jana Christensen (North Mankato, Minn.) – who hit .625 in the first match against Loras – finished the second match with nine kills, while Amber Zeiher added eight and a team-high four block assists. 

Shanee Herd (Alexandria, Minn.) and Shelby Rachel (Maple Lake, Minn.) conitnued their strong play defensively as they contributed 27 and 23 digs, respectively. Rachel also had a match-high 23 digs in the win over Loras. Abigail Palmer (Pequot Lakes, Minn.) also chipped in 20 digs in the loss to the Yellow Jackets. 

With the win and the loss the Wildcats improve to 6-7 on the season. Highlights from the rest of the St. Kate's Invite can be found on the tournament website.

The Wildcats take a break from tournament play to begin the Minnesota Intercollegiate Athletic Conference (MIAC) season Wednesday, playing host to St. Olaf College at 7 p.m. in the Butler Center. 

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