University of St. Thomas Athletics
Thursday, September 28
Fargo, N.D. / Bentson Bunker Fieldhouse
7:00 p.m. Central
4-9,0-2Summit League
0
at
3
North Dakota State
10-4,2-1Summit League
1
2
3
F
St. Thomas (MN)
22
15
27
0
North Dakota St.
25
25
29
3
Team Stats
UST
NDSU
Kills
38
51
Errors
16
17
Attempts
110
109
Hitting %
.200
.312
Points
47.0
68.0
Assists
37
48
Aces
4
9
Blocks
5
8
Game Leaders
Kills-Aces-Blocks
Kills
11
Aces
1
Blocks
0
Kills
7
Aces
2
Blocks
3
Kills
4
Aces
0
Blocks
1
Players Mentioned
MB
/ VolleyballOH
/ Volleyball
S
/ Volleyball
S
/ Volleyball
OH/RS
/ VolleyballMB
/ Volleyball
Photo by: Kylie Macziewski
Tommies fall short in tight contest at North Dakota State
9/28/2023 8:43:00 PM | Volleyball
FARGO, N.D. -- The first road match of 2023 Summit League play ended with a loss for St. Thomas volleyball against North Dakota State, 3-0 (22-25, 15-25, 29-27). Freshman outside hitter Ellie Gustafson led with 11 kills while fellow freshman setter Morgan Kealy totaled 26 assists.
Recap
The Tommies started strong with a 4-1 lead behind a solo block from Megan Wetter, her first of three total blocks in the match. The Bison tied the opening set 10-10 before a six-point run and a 16-11 lead. The Tommies responded with a four-point run of their own which consisted of two kills by Wetter, one by Gustafson, and an ace by sophomore setter Keya Luta Win Hunt. Sophomore outside hitter Ava Wild had three kills for the Tommies' final points of the set, but NDSU held its distance to go ahead, 1-0.
Despite a 3-0 lead for the Tommies to start the second set, the Bison took its first lead behind a 4-0 run. A kill by Wetter, assisted by Hunt, gave the Purple their final lead of the set. Wetter and sophomore outside hitter Tezra Rudzitis totaled four kills in the set, followed by Gustafson with three while Kealy added nine assists.
The Tommies secured an 11-4 lead to start the third set behind a combined three service aces, two from Wetter and one from Gustafson, a solo block from Rudzitis, and five total kills from senior middle blocker Ellie Dammann, sophomore outside hitter Kaitlynn Peterson, Wetter, and Gustafson. The Bison scored six of the next eight points to pull within three, 13-10, before Gustafson recorded three of the Tommies' next four kills to lead by six. A late kill by Dammann and an NDSU attack error set the Tommies up with a 23-20 lead, but the Bison scored four straight to reach match point and won after three set points for the Purple.
Top Tommies
Recap
The Tommies started strong with a 4-1 lead behind a solo block from Megan Wetter, her first of three total blocks in the match. The Bison tied the opening set 10-10 before a six-point run and a 16-11 lead. The Tommies responded with a four-point run of their own which consisted of two kills by Wetter, one by Gustafson, and an ace by sophomore setter Keya Luta Win Hunt. Sophomore outside hitter Ava Wild had three kills for the Tommies' final points of the set, but NDSU held its distance to go ahead, 1-0.
Despite a 3-0 lead for the Tommies to start the second set, the Bison took its first lead behind a 4-0 run. A kill by Wetter, assisted by Hunt, gave the Purple their final lead of the set. Wetter and sophomore outside hitter Tezra Rudzitis totaled four kills in the set, followed by Gustafson with three while Kealy added nine assists.
The Tommies secured an 11-4 lead to start the third set behind a combined three service aces, two from Wetter and one from Gustafson, a solo block from Rudzitis, and five total kills from senior middle blocker Ellie Dammann, sophomore outside hitter Kaitlynn Peterson, Wetter, and Gustafson. The Bison scored six of the next eight points to pull within three, 13-10, before Gustafson recorded three of the Tommies' next four kills to lead by six. A late kill by Dammann and an NDSU attack error set the Tommies up with a 23-20 lead, but the Bison scored four straight to reach match point and won after three set points for the Purple.
Top Tommies
- Freshman outside hitter Ellie Gustafson led the team with 12 points and 11 kills as well as having seven digs and one service ace. Gustafson reached 100 kills for her career, entering Thursday with 91 on the season.
- Sophomore middle blocker Megan Wetter totaled 11.5 points behind seven kills, two service aces, one solo block and two block assists, with five digs.
- Freshman setter Morgan Kealy led the team with 26 of the team's 37 assists.
Quotables
Head Coach Thanh Pham's overall takeaway after such a closely contested pair of sets, heading into Friday's match at North Dakota:
"We continue to show competitive spirit and fall just short in execution at critical times. We did so many positive things such as great first-ball contacts and supporting one another. We need to continue to work on the basics and building confidence in oneself and each other. Tomorrow's match will be another great test for us."
Up Next
The Tommies stay on the road for a game against University of North Dakota at 7 p.m. on Friday, Sept., 29 in Grand Forks to continue Summit League play. The Tommies are back in St. Paul, Minn., Thursday, October 5 in Schoenecker Area at 7 p.m. against University of Denver.
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-- St. Thomas Athletics --
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