Concordia volleyball utilizes grit in win against College of Saint Mary

Concordia volleyball huddles during its match against College of Saint Mary

Photo: Christian Myers

By Christian Myers

In what was a dramatic few hours at Friedrich Arena in Seward, Nebraska, the No. 3 Concordia volleyball team defeated the College of Saint Mary Flames in a total of four competitive sets. After losing 25-21 in set number one, Concordia didn’t look back and proceeded to take the next three 25-20, 25-17, and 26-24.  

Concordia was never truly able to get on its feet in the first set of its second Great Plains Athletic Conference match. Multiple service and attack errors allowed Saint Mary to gain a 12-5 lead early on. However, there was certainly no lack of fight from the Bulldogs as later, a set from sophomore Emma Brueggemann resulted in a kill by freshman Samantha Kimbell to make the score 21-18. Ultimately, their effort would come up short as a string of errors would end the set with Saint Mary out in front.  

Coach Ben Boldt would later be impressed by his team, noting that they didn’t let set one affect their play moving forward. 

“We didn’t get uncharacteristic; we stayed composed, the mentality was what I’m most proud of,” Boldt said. 

Set two was no doubt an improvement, but a few shaky moments draped a queasy feeling over the arena. Errors on the attack and back-to-back service errors quickly made Concordia’s lead vanish. The score sat at 12-12 when, very rapidly, the Bulldogs went on a 4-0 run, forcing the Flames to use a timeout. Performances from junior Shandy Fa’ali’i, senior Bella Hedke, and sophomore Makenna Starkey kept Concordia at a respectable lead for the rest of the contest, producing the 25-20 win.  

After the short intermission at the end of set two, Concordia once again looked as if the day was going to get away from them as set three began. Saint Mary took a commanding 6-1 lead right out of the gate. However, error after error plagued the Flames, and the Bulldogs took full advantage. Starkey shut the door by blocking three attacks, and another couple of sets from freshman Myla Emery gave Fa’ali’i two more kills to end the set leading 25-17.

All of the day’s drama found its way into set number four as scoring from both teams consistently went back and forth throughout the contest. It was 4-4 early, then 9-9, then 18-18, all the way until the score evened up at 24-24. A kill by Kimbell put the Bulldogs out in front by one, forcing all of the pressure onto Saint Mary. The very next volley would provide relief for the Concordia fanbase as a set from Emery was attacked and killed by none other than Fa’ali’i.  

That set specifically was commanded by Starkey’s six total kills, along with helpful assists from Emery and Ella Brueggemann. Overall, Starkey led Concordia with 15 kills on only 23 attempted attacks and four errors; an incredible 0.478 kill percentage. She enjoys the pressure that comes with the tight sets.

“Those are the most fun, most high-pressure moments, and so when we can perform like that under pressure, it’s something that nothing else reaches. It’s so fun and so exhilarating,” Starkey said.

The Bulldogs altogether bested Saint Mary with 49 total kills, nine blocks, and five aces. What was far from their best performance accumulated into a day of grit and pure passion.  

“We play as a team, we play as a family, so that was something really big for us. And when we do that, we really can achieve anything,” said Starkey to end the night.  

Concordia volleyball improves to 2-0 in conference play and 11-2 overall. They will take on Mount Marty University on Wednesday, September 16th in Yankton, South Dakota.