Huskies drop heartbreaker to #8 Northern State 3-2

Saturday, October 12

St. Cloud, Minn.

2 p.m.

St. Cloud State

14-2,8-0NSIC

Northern State

13-3,7-1NSIC

Northern St.

St. Cloud St.

St. Cloud State tallied more kills (68) and blocks (14) than Northern State Saturday afternoon.

Photo by: Kylie Macziewski

10/12/2019 5:18:00 PM | Volleyball

Box Score

ST. CLOUD, MINN. – It was anticipated to be one of the best volleyball matches in the Northern Sun Intercollegiate Conference (NSIC) this season. The top offensive team in the conference (Northern State University) against the top defensive team (St. Cloud State University) doing battle in Halenbeck Hall in St. Cloud, Minnesota.

The match certainly delivered, as the Huskies and Wolves battled for five sets, each team showing off their strengths and occasional weaknesses. Unfortunately for St. Cloud State, a victory was not in the cards, despite pushing #8 Northern State to its second five-set match in as many days, as the team fell by a final score of 3-2 (25-23, 18-25, 30-28, 21-25, 9-15).

The Huskies wasted no time taking a lead in the match with a 25-23 win in the opening set. The majority of the set was back-and-forth, as it featured eight lead changes and 18 tied scores, but St. Cloud State won points when it mattered most, specifically at the very end. The Huskies were aided by a three-point serving run by Linsey Rachel (Maple Lake, Minn. / Maple Lake), allowing them to take a 20-17 lead over the Wolves.

Northern State managed to stay within two of St. Cloud State from that point on in the set and eventually tied things at 23-23. Back-to-back kills from Rachel, though, halted the Wolves run in its tracks, as the Huskies went on to take set one 25-23.

Things didn't exactly go St. Cloud State's way in set two, as Northern State rallied to win the set 25-18 and even the match at 1-1. The Huskies did manage to fight off two set points, though, before falling 25-18, giving them some momentum heading into the third set. It turned out, St. Cloud State would need that momentum, as the team once again found itself in an early deficit. Thanks to strong serving, the Wolves went up 5-2 in set three and eventually took a 16-11 lead in the late staged of the set.

It looked bleak for the Huskies as they tried to climb back into the third set. Every time the team cut the lead down to two or three points, Northern State would rattle off two more, taking what seemed to be a decisive 20-14 lead. Down to his final few subs, head coach Chad Braeglemann put in freshman middle blocker Phebie Rossi (Rapid City, South Dakota / Stevens) for blocking assistance. The switch proved to be one of the best moves of the match, as Rossi tallied two kills and helped the Huskies win 10 of the next 12 points to even things up at 23-23.

A bad set by the Wolves gave St. Cloud State its first lead of the set at 24-23, but the two teams were in for the long haul, as Northern State tied it 24-24 with a kill from Peyton Ellingson. For 10 gut wrenching minutes, the Wolves and Huskies traded set points, until Rossi went back to the line with a 29-28 lead. The first year's float serve gracefully glided over the net, but Northern State's passers were there to keep it from falling to the floor. St. Cloud State fans held their breath as outside hitter Sally Gaul went up from the pin, looking to smash the ball and tie things up at 29-29.

Her attack never even made it to the Huskies side of the net, as Maddy Torve (Loretto, Minn. / Heritage Christian Academy) and Halle Hughes (Mankato, Minn. / Mankato West) were there with the clutch block, securing the set at 30-28 and taking a 2-1 lead in the match.

St. Cloud State was unfortunately unable to seal the deal in the final two sets, as Northern State forced a fifth set with a 25-21 set four win before winning the fifth set 15-9 to take the match 3-2.

Rachel led both teams in kills Saturday afternoon, as she recorded 21 kills and added 18 digs for yet another double-double. Erin Navratil (Albany, Minn. / Albany) and Chloe Dousette (St. Paul, Minn. / Cretin-Derham Hall) both recorded double-digit kills for the Huskies, finishing with 11 and 15 respectively.

Defensively, St. Cloud State was led by Clara Krenz (Oakdale, Minn. / North St. Paul), who finished the match with a team-leading 28 digs. Hughes recorded a career-high two solo blocks and seven assists finishing the match with nine total.

With the loss, the Huskies overall record falls to 14-2 and they are now 6-2 in NSIC play. St. Cloud State will return to action on Friday, October 18, when the team travels to South Dakota to take on Augustana University.