Concordia University volleyball survives scare v. Morningside, wins 3-2

Senior Lily Psencik preps a serve against the opposing team (photo from previous game).

Photo credit: Kai Olbrich

By Kai Olbrich

Sports Editor

After a scare in the second and third sets, the No. 2 Concordia University volleyball team went on to defeat the Morningside Mustangs 3-2 on Oct. 3.

The game started off as expected with a 25-23 win in the first set, but the Concordia rhythm was thrown off soon after as the Bulldogs were beaten in a set for the first time in three matches.

25-18 and 27-25 were the second and third set scores in favor of Morningside. Concordia went up early in both of those sets but was unable to stop the Mustang comebacks.

The fourth and fifth sets were more comfortable for Concordia as they won 25-17 and 15-9. That coincided with their best kill percentage of the night. .179 in the fourth set and .304 in the fifth. The Bulldogs hit .161 as a team throughout the match, while Morningside hit .111.

Concordia also improved its defensive play at the net as it held the Mustangs to a negative kill percentage in the final two sets. Seniors Molli Martin and Kya Scott each had five block assists, with Martin adding one solo. Junior Ava Greene was dominant all over the net with seven blocks and a team-high .429 kill percentage.

As usual, senior Ashley Keck led the way in total kills with 15, but her 10 errors had her hitting uncharacteristically under .100. Freshman Ella Brueggemann posted 24 assists, while her sister, freshman Emma Brueggemann, led the team in digs with 34.

The win puts Concordia up to 14-1, 7-0 in the Great Plains Athletic Conference. The Bulldogs will face Briar Cliff on Oct. 3 as they spend a second day in a row in Sioux City, Iowa.