WINONA, Minn. – The Carleton College volleyball team battled back from a two sets-to-none deficit at Saint Mary’s, but the Cardinals won the fifth set 15-10 to secure the victory, snapping the Knights’ five-match win streak. Kelly Lovett (Jr./Portland, Ore./Lincoln) had a match-high 20 kills to pace the Carleton attack. She filled up the stat sheet by also notching 11 digs, four block assists, and two aces.
“We did a great job coming back. It’s too back that we couldn’t pull it out after working so hard to rally back,” said Carleton head coach Heidi Jaynes. “We had our chances.”
The loss drops Carleton (9-3, 2-2 MIAC) into a three-way tie with Saint Mary’s and St. Kate’s for sixth place in the conference.
The Cardinals (12-5, 2-2 MIAC) quickly built an 11-3 lead in the opening set and cruised to a 25-18 win. It appeared the second set would be another easy victory for the home team, but after trailing 20-12, the Knights refused to surrender and went on an 11-3 spurt to tie the score. They may have expended too much energy doing so as Saint Mary’s closed out the set, 25-23. But after making the two-hour trek over to Winona, the Knights were in no hurry to leave quite yet.
With their backs against the wall and the outcome of the third set in doubt, the the Knights turned to senior middle hitter Annie Eckhoff (Northfield, Minn.) for kills on four consecutive points en route to a 25-20 triumph. She finished the evening with 15 kills and eight blocks.
Right-side attacker Sarah Halls (Sr./Edina, Minn.) recorded five of her career high-tying 12 kills as Carleton closed the fourth set on a 24-15 burst, sending the contest into a fifth set.
With little margin for error, the Knights were again forced to play catch up in the final set, eventually equaling the score at 9-9. The Cardinals closed the evening’s festivities with a 6-1 run, including their 11th service ace to finish the match.
Beth Jarrett (Jr./Mounds View, Minn./Irondale) contributed 43 assists and 11 digs as Carleton played only its second five-setter of the season.
Saint Mary’s had four players reach double figures in kills, with Jessica Mate leading the way with 19, including four during the deciding set. Brittany Cherwinka dished out a season- and career-high 58 assists.
The conference will suspend play this weekend for the annual MIAC-IIAC Border Battle. Carleton will face Buena Vista University (2 p.m.) and University of Dubuque (6 p.m.) on Friday, Oct. 2. The Knights will be right back on the court on Saturday versus Luther College (9:30 a.m.) and Cornell College (11:30 a.m.) All four contests will be played at St. Olaf College in Northfield, Minn.
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