Rossi, Rachel power No. 9 Huskies to four-set win over RV Ashland

Saturday, August 27

St. Cloud, Minn.

5:30 P.M. CT

St. Cloud State

Ashland

Photo by: Kylie Macziewski

Rossi, Rachel power No. 9 Huskies to four-set win over RV Ashland

8/27/2022 10:45:00 PM | Volleyball

Box Score

Both reigning All-Americans joined by Kenzie Foley on All-Tournament Team

ST. CLOUD, Minn. – No. 9 St. Cloud State Volleyball punctuated a perfect start to the season with a four-set win over RV Ashland on Saturday evening at Halenbeck Hall. Linsey Rachel, Phebie Rossi and Kenzie Foley were each named to the All-Tournament Team as the Huskies were 4-0 at the St. Cloud State/Concordia-St. Paul Invite.

Phebie Rossi was phenomenal as both an attacker and a blocker, putting down 18 kills on .340 hitting while adding eight blocks. Linsey Rachel settled in after a quiet first set, delivering her second double-double of the season with 13 kills and 20 digs. Kenzie Foley likewise double-doubled for the second time in 2022 – adding 14 kills and 18 digs – and dominated the service line with a career-high five aces. Emma Berran piled up a career-best 51 assists to close out a strong collegiate debut weekend.

Keely Kurschner added 20 digs to an excellent tournament showing. The Huskies' block piled up 10.0 total blocks, led by Rossi's eight and Berran's four. SCSU limited Ashland to 46 kills and a .145 hitting percentage on the night, forcing them into 22 errors.

Turning Point

After dropping the third set 25-22, St. Cloud State relied on a stellar offensive showing to take care of business in the fourth. The Huskies terminated 18 kills on .311 hitting. Emma Berran directed the surge with 16 assists in the set, finding her middles Phebie Rossi and Sam Zimmerman for five kills each. SCSU's defense racked up 21 digs in the fourth – six courtesy of Keely Kurschner and five from Kenzie Foley – on their way to holding Ashland to hit just .179.

Quotables – St. Cloud State head coach Chad Braegelmann

"I thought we made some nice plays throughout the weekend. Ashland really challenged us defensively, put us in some uncomfortable positions on offense. I thought we were okay – we just got tentative. We stopped swinging and relied too much on tipping. We scouted and knew they were going to be playing a little bit deeper, but we certainly had to do a much better job there to be aggressive. Overall, it was a fun weekend!"

On Phebie Rossi's big performance… "She was good. She had 18 kills – it was nice to see her back in a position where she could score and take swings on the ball. It was a good opportunity to get her rolling a little bit."

"We put ourselves in a good spot. We certainly have a long list of things to work on, but it's part of the challenge – helping the women reach their peak. It's fun."

Notables

Phebie Rossi's 18 kills were one shy of her career high
Rossi averaged 1.46 blocks/set on the week
Maddie MacTaggart entered in the fourth and recorded the Huskies' final two kills
Emma Berran recorded career-highs in assists (51) and blocks (4)
Berran averaged 11.46 assists/set in her debut weekend directing the SCSU offense
Keely Kurschner averaged 5.31 digs/set during the tournament
Linsey Rachel (13 K/20 D) and Kenzie Foley (14 K/18 D) each double-doubled for the second time this season
Foley is averaging 4.69 kills and 5.88 points a set while adding 10 aces through her first four matches
Rachel and Foley were perfect on serve receive this week, going 133-for-133
With her 13 kills, Rachel is now just five away from moving into fourth all-time in program history
SCSU is hitting .268 and holding opponents to a .134 hitting percentage – outhitting their foes by 134 points
St. Cloud State has 28 aces to their opponents' seven this season
The Huskies are 2-0 against teams receiving votes in the AVCA Top-25 poll
SCSU is now 27-3 at Halenbeck Hall since 2019 and has won 30 of their last 33 home matches

SCSU/CSP Invite All-Tournament Team

Kenzie Foley – St. Cloud State
Linsey Rachel – St. Cloud State
Phebie Rossi – St. Cloud State
Jasmine Mulvihill – Concordia-St. Paul
Emma Schmidt – Concordia-St. Paul
Teagan Starkey – Concordia-St. Paul
Grace Daak – Minnesota Duluth
Hope Schjenken – Minnesota Duluth
Sidney Paulson – Winona State
Katie Thompson – Ashland
Abigail Cunningham – Seattle Pacific
Stormi Tadlock – Drury

Up Next

The Huskies open competition at the Hyatt Place Bash at the Beach in West Palm Beach, Florida on Friday, September 2. SCSU will play four matches in Florida before beginning NSIC action on September 9 at Mary.

Information regarding single game and season tickets can be found at scsutickets.com. For all the latest on St. Cloud State Volleyball, stay tuned to SCSUHuskies.com and follow the team on Twitter, Instagram and Facebook.

–HUSKIES–