Kealy surpasses 2,500 career assists, Rudzitis ties kills record in win over DU

ST. PAUL, Minn. – Tezra Rudzitis and Morgan Kealy's memorable nights help guide St. Thomas volleyball to a season sweep over Denver, taking a 3-1 win (25-9, 22-25, 25-19, 25-15) on Thursday night in Schoenecker Arena. Rudzitis tied the program's Division I single-match kill record of 23 while Kealy surpassed 2,500 career assists as the Tommies improve to 16-7 overall and 9-3 in the Summit League.

SCORING SUMMARY
Set One: Rudzitis opened the night with authority, recording the first three points of the match - all kills - to ignite a 12-1 St. Thomas run fueled by four straight Denver attack errors. The Tommies built a 15-3 advantage and maintained control the rest of the way, closing the frame on a 9-4 stretch to take the set, 25-9. St. Thomas hit .462 with 14 kills on just two errors, while Denver was limited to a -.080 percentage with six errors to four kills. Megan Wetter tallied six kills in the frame, and Allie Kopp closed the set with one of her two service aces.

Set Two: Denver responded with a 5-1 start in the second set before kills by Rudzitis and Ellie Gustafson, along with an ace from Anya Schmidt, brought the Tommies within 6-4. St. Thomas rallied to take its first lead at 12-11 behind two Rudzitis kills and a solo block from Addie Schmotzer. The Purple appeared to take control after a 6-0 run - featuring kills by Rudzitis and Schmotzer and an ace by Kealy - forced a pair of Pioneer timeouts. Denver countered with a 9-0 surge of its own to close the set, 25-22, and even the match at one apiece.

Set Three: Rudzitis again opened the scoring with a kill, though Denver responded with a 5-0 burst to prompt a Tommie timeout. Another Rudzitis kill helped spark a 5-0 St. Thomas answer to reclaim the lead, 6-5, followed by a 7-1 run capped by back-to-back Wetter aces to extend the advantage to 14-8. Denver cut the deficit to one, 20-19, before three consecutive Rudzitis kills set up match point, and a block assist from Schmotzer and Gustafson secured the 25-19 win. Rudzitis delivered nine kills in the set as St. Thomas hit .345, while Denver hit .370 but committed five costly service errors.

Set Four: Denver struck first, but three Tommies - Rudzitis, Wetter and Kealy - answered with kills to take the lead for good. Rudzitis's career-high 20th kill highlighted a 4-0 run that extended the advantage to 13-7, while a trio of finishes from Wetter, Gustafson and Kealy, plus an ace by Schmidt, kept the margin steady. St. Thomas closed on a 5-0 run behind two kills each from Rudzitis and Gustafson, including Rudzitis's record-tying 23rd kill, to seal the 3-1 match victory.

TOMMIE TIDBITS

Tezra Rudzitis, the reigning Summit League Offensive Peak Performer of the Week tied the program's Division I single-match record with 23 kills on a .487 hitting percentage. The record was originally set by Lauren Galvin twice last season in back-to-back matches.
Megan Wetter added 12 kills on a .370 clip with two aces and a block for 14.5 points, while Ellie Gustafson tallied 10 kills, six digs and tied Schmotzer for a team-high four blocks, matching her career best.
With 47 assists and 18 digs, Morgan Kealy notched her 14th double-double of the season and 41st of her career. She became the first Tommie in the Division I era to surpass 2,500 career assists, now totaling 2,539. She's the second active athlete in the Summit League with as many assists.
Anya Schmidt recorded 11 digs and a team-best four aces alongside five kills.
St. Thomas hit .331 on the night with 10 service aces and 5.0 blocks while Denver hit .154 from the floor.

QUOTEABLES
Head Coach Thanh Pham's thoughts following
"Denver was a big team and we got them out of system by serving aggressive. I thought Morgan did a great job spreading the ball around and finding one-on-ones. Tezra had a career night and, again, we respect the heck out of Denver. They're going to be in the Summit League tournament and it was good to know that if we play well, good things can happen."

UP NEXT
St. Thomas remains home Saturday as it hosts South Dakota State, who clinched a share of the Summit League title Thursday night. First serve against the Jackrabbits is set for 12 p.m.

FOLLOW ALONG
For more information on St. Thomas Volleyball, follow along on X (formerly Twitter) and Instagram at @tommievball. Tommie Athletics is now available on TikTok at @TommieSports.

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-- St. Thomas Athletics --

Kealy surpasses 2,500 career assists, Rudzitis ties kills record in win over DU

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Team Stats

Tezra Rudzitis

Megan Wetter

Ellie Gustafson

Addie Schmotzer

Players Mentioned

Lauren Galvin

Ellie Gustafson

Morgan Kealy

Allie Kopp

Tezra Rudzitis

Anya Schmidt

Addie Schmotzer

Megan Wetter

University of St. Thomas Athletics