Volleyball downs #3 UMD in Halloween showdown

Thursday, October 31

St. Cloud, Minn.

6 p.m.

St. Cloud State

18-4,10-4NSIC

Minnesota Duluth

19-3,12-2NSIC

Minn. Duluth

St. Cloud St.

Erin Navratil (1) and Halle Hughes (11) celebrate a point in the Huskies 3-1 win over #3 Minnesota-Duluth.

Photo by: Kylie Macziewski

10/31/2019 9:08:00 PM | Volleyball

Box Score

ST. CLOUD, MINN. – Outside of Halenbeck Hall, it was a brisk 34 degrees and there was a slight chill in the air from a perfect fall wind. Inside Halenbeck Hall, it was rocking. You might even call it a monster mash, as St. Cloud State hosted its Northern Sun Intercollegiate Conference (NSIC) rival the University of Minnesota-Duluth in a showdown that featured everything a fan could hope for.

Two nationally ranked opponents (the Huskies entered the game ranked #11 in the nation; the Bulldogs #3). Sister setters piloting two of the top offenses in the NSIC.

And, of course, a St. Cloud State win.

For the second consecutive year, the Huskies took down their arch nemesis at home, though this year, it did require an extra set. Still, #3 Minnesota-Duluth was no match for St. Cloud State's blistering offense and fierce defense, as the home team won by a final score of 3-1 (25-22, 26-24, 22-25, 25-19).

Like they have all season, the Huskies showed resiliency, tenacity and grit, as they came back from behind in all four sets played Thursday evening. In fact, St. Cloud State fell behind 3-0 in the first set, but a kill from sophomore outside Linsey Rachel (Maple Lake, Minn. / Maple Lake) stopped the early Bulldog run. However, Minnesota-Duluth would still win four of the next six points, eventually extending its lead over the seemingly overmatched St. Cloud State 8-4.

The Huskies then put together their first rally of the night, as strong serving by Rachel Houle (Stillwater, Minn. / Stillwater) forced the Bulldogs offense out of system and cut the visiting team's lead to 8-7. That single run was all St. Cloud State would need to eventually tie the set at 11-11 on an ace from Maddy Torve (Loretto, Minn. / Heritage Christian Academy) before taking its first lead at 13-12.

Minnesota-Duluth managed to hang with the Huskies for a few points, but again, the serve of Houle proved to be too much for the Bulldogs, as she gave St. Cloud State a substantial lead at 17-15. From there, the Huskies just kept adding to their total until a kill from Rachel secured the first set victory for St. Cloud State at 25-22.

Unlike the opener, the Huskies kept pace with the Bulldogs in the early stages of the second, matching the #3 team point for point through the first 10 of the set before taking a three-point lead to 8-5. Minnesota-Duluth, though, showed it too had the uncanny ability to grind out tough stretches, winning nine of 12 points this time to take a (seemingly) commanding 14-11 lead of their own thanks to strong serves by libero Kenna Seiffert. St. Cloud State managed to tie things up at 14-14 thanks to blocks by Phebie Rossi (Rapid City, S.D. / Stevens) and Chloe Dousette (St. Paul, Minn. / Cretin-Derham Hall), but it wasn't enough, as another rough serve receive rotation gave the Bulldogs a 19-15 buffer late in the set.

Then came the rally. Sparked by a block by Marah Mulso (Marshall, Minn. / Marshall) and Erin Navratil (Albany, Minn. / Albany) and fueled by Houle's serves, the Huskies chipped away at Minnesota-Duluth's lead, cutting it to 20-18 before tying the set at 20-20. Then Rossi put the team on her shoulders. After back-to-back service errors by St. Cloud State's Taylor Olstad (Eagan, Minn. / Eagan) and Minnesota-Duluth's Emily Balts resulted in a 21-21 draw, the Huskies went up 23-21 thanks to back to back kills from Rossi. The first year then put St. Cloud State within one of a 2-0 set lead over the Bulldogs with her ninth kill of the night, boosting the Huskies lead to 24-22.

Minnesota-Duluth won the next two points, tying things up 24-24. With the tension hanging throughout the gym, Rachel delivered the smash of the night to give St. Cloud State a 25-24 lead before her serve clinched the victory at 26-24.

The Huskies forgot how to volleyball in the third set, as the Bulldogs forced a fourth with a 25-22 win. A quick reset between sets was all St. Cloud State needed, as the team literally cruised to a 25-19 fourth set win, claiming the match by a final score of 3-1.

Rachel was once again the team's top offensive player, closing the match with a team-leading 17 kills and 13 digs for her 15^th double-double of the 2019 season. However, it was what the Huskies defense did to the Bulldogs that might be most impressive. While Minnesota-Duluth tallied 59 kills in the match, St. Cloud State's defense forced the #3 team in the nation to commit 36 hitting errors for a season-low hitting percentage of .124. More impressive? The Huskies tallied 13 total team blocks compared to the Bulldogs five, including five blocks assists from senior Mulso.

Clara Krenz (Oakdale, Minn. / North St. Paul) was again a defensive stalwart for St. Cloud State, as she recorded 26 digs in the victory. She also became the first player in program history to tally 2000 career digs in her career, a feat she achieved midway through the Huskies 26-24 second set win.

Olstad was also impressive defensively, adding 14 digs of her own, while Torve again piloted St. Cloud State's offense with 43 assists.

With the victory, the Huskies overall record improves to 18-4 and they are now 10-4 in NSIC play. The win also marks St. Cloud State's first over a top-5 team in 20+ years, according to available records, as Minnesota-Duluth was ranked #6 when the Huskies won in straight sets in 2018.

St. Cloud State will return to action on Saturday, November 2 when the team travels to Bemidji, Minnesota to take on Bemidji State. First serve is scheduled for 2 p.m. in BSU Gymnasium.