Huskies take two on second day of BW Kelly Inn Huskies Volleyball Classic

Friday, September 13

St. Cloud, Minn.

9 a.m.

St. Cloud State

8-0

Lake Superior State

3-5

Lake Superior St.

St. Cloud State

Maddy Torve (14) and teammates celebrate her block in the fourth set against Michigan Tech.

Photo by: Kylie Macziewski

Huskies take two on second day of BW Kelly Inn Huskies Volleyball Classic

9/13/2019 10:46:00 PM | Volleyball

Box Score 1 Box Score 2

ST. CLOUD, MINN. – There are various forms of perfection. There's pristine perfection, like fondant on a three-teared wedding cake or the crisp, clean sparkle on a clear diamond. There's imperfect perfection, like frosting on brownies or a slightly crooked smile.

Then there's the St. Cloud State University volleyball team: perfect through seven matches of the 2019 season.

Yes, the Huskies were again victorious, as they went 2-0 on the second day of the BW Kelly Inn Huskies Volleyball Classic in St. Cloud, Minnesota. First the team took down Lake Superior State University in straight sets 3-0 (25-18, 25-12, 25-22) before upended No. 21 Michigan Tech University 3-1 (25-19, 27-25, 19-25, 25-18) to cap off a day that was practically perfect in every way.

Like many of its matches, St. Cloud State was dominant in its win over Lake Superior State, as the team handily in straight sets. In fact, the Huskies hit .264 as a team in the match, with 38 kills in 91 attempts. More importantly, St. Cloud State was also strong defensively, as the team racked up 47 digs and 11 total blocks against the Lakers, including multiple from Halle Hughes (Mankato, Minn. / Mankato West), Marah Mulso (Marshall, Minn. / Marshall) and Abby Templin (Cold Spring, Minn. / ROCORI).

The Huskies, though, saved the best for last, as they took down No. 21 Michigan Tech (also the Huskies) to improve to 7-0 on the season. And it all started with a thrilling first set comeback. Despite strong defensive play, St. Cloud State trailed the nationally ranked Huskies 6-2 in the early stages of the set before the team went on an impressive four-point run to tie things up. Erin Navratil (Albany, Minn. / Albany) kicked things off with a kill from the outside before tough serving from Taylor Olstad (Eagan, Minn. / Eagan) forced Michigan Tech's offense out of sync, allowing the Huskies to tie things up at six-all.

The (other) Huskies managed to stop the bleeding and take a three-point lead, but it wasn't enough to hold St. Cloud State at bay. In fact, the (good) Huskies won five of the ensuing eight points, allowing them to take their first lead of the set at 11-9. Though Michigan Tech managed to tie things up at 11, the (other) Huskies never managed to take the lead, as a kill from Mulso clinched the set for St. Cloud State at 25-19.

The Huskies would need another comeback in set two in order to take a 2-0 lead in the match, as they trailed 5-1 just six points in. Again, a huge serving run, this time by Rachel Houle (Stillwater, Minn. / Stillwater), allowed St. Cloud State to tie things up at 5-5 and seemed to swing the momentum back in the home team's favor.

The two teams would trade points back-and-fourth for a while, but Michigan Tech always seemed just one step ahead of the Huskies. Despite a plethora of kills and blocks by St. Cloud State, the team found itself down 15-11 in one of their toughest serve receive rotations. A kill from Chloe Dousette (St. Paul, Minn. / Cretin-Derham Hall) stopped the Michigan Tech run in its tracks, and more impressive serves from Houle helped St. Cloud State tie it all up at 16-16.

The next few minutes were not for the faint of heart, as the back-and-forth trading of points resumed until Dousette and Linsey Rachel (Maple Lake, Minn. / Maple Lake) managed to give the Huskies their first lead of the second set at 21-19. Michigan Tech, though, managed to tie this up at 21-21, which eventually led to a 24-22 other Huskies lead.

St. Cloud State wasn't about to be deterred, as the team fought off three two sets points to tie it up at 24-24. Back-to-back kills from Dousette tied things up at 24 before the Huskies took a lead on a ball-handing error by the Michigan Tech setter. The visitors managed to win the next point, but yet another kill from Mulso and a block by her and setter Maddy Torve (Loretto, Minn. / Heritage Christian Academy) clinched the Huskies win at 27-25.

St. Cloud State hit a bit of speed bump in set three, as Michigan Tech forced a fourth set with a 25-19 victory. The Huskies, though, were not about to be deterred in the fourth, as they dominated en route to their 25-18 win. Thanks to clutch serving from Torve and Rachel, as well as spectacular defensive play, St. Cloud State was able to jump out to an 18-9 win it would never relinquish, eventually winning the set 25-18 and the match 3-1.

Rachel and Dousette were once again forces of nature on offense, as both tallied 17 kills in the win over Michigan Tech. Mulso was also stellar as she tallied a career-high 14 kills out o the middle in the win, while Navratil added 12.

Torve also tallied a career-high on the night, as her 54 digs piloted the Huskies offensive throughout the night. She also was just shy of tallying 100 assists during the day, as she additionally recorded 37 in the win over Lake Superior State.

Clara Krenz (Oakdale, Minn. / North St. Paul) was out of this world defensively. For the fifth time this season, the senior libero recorded 20+ digs in a match, as she finished with a team leading 27 against Michigan Tech. Rachel was also spectacular defensively, as her 25 digs were a career-high, while Olstad finished the night with 18 digs.

Thanks to the wins, St. Cloud State's overall record improves to 7-0, the team's best start in the last five seasons. The Huskies will return to action on Saturday, September 14, when they host No. 14 Wheeling Jesuit at 7 p.m. in St. Cloud, Minnesota.