MARSHALL, Minn. – The No. 17 ranked Southwest Minnesota State volleyball team (11-4, 4-4 NSIC) defeated the No. 8 ranked Concordia-St. Paul Golden Bears (11-4, 7-1 NSIC) in five sets, 19-25, 25-16, 29-27, 18-25, 15-13. The win on Friday night broke a five-match losing streak for the Mustangs against the Golden Bears.
Leah Jones led the Mustangs in kills with 18 and added four digs.
Mya Krystosek had a double double of 17 kills and 17 digs, hitting .333 on the night.
Ashley Peltier added 12 kills and hit .231.
McKenzie Tolk led the team in digs with 22, and was one of three Mustangs with double-digit digs.
Sydney Thein had 59 assists on the night, her second highest assists in a match this season.
The Mustangs as a team hit .239 (66-23-180) while the Golden Bears, who were led in kills by Makenna Nold with 25, hit .259 (69-23-179).
Concordia-St. Paul got off to a hot start in the first set, leading 10-0. And while the Mustangs ended up outscoring the Golden Bears 19-15 in the rest of the set, the big lead early proved too much for SMSU. The Golden Bears hit .405 in the first set, the best they hit all match, and took the first set 25-19.
The Mustangs answered straight back in the second set, leading 8-2 with three kills from
Leah Jones. The two teams traded points back and forth until the Mustangs went on a 5-1 run, and cruised through the rest of the set. The Mustangs hit .519 in the second set and had 17 kills, winning the set 25-16.
The third set started strong again for the Mustangs, leading 9-3 and led by
Natalie Pilney with three kills. However, a 7-2 CSP run put the game into reach again for the Golden Bears. It would remain a tight contest until the final point, with a Kill from
Karli Arkell and an ace from
Mya Krystosek ending it in favor of SMSU, 29-27.
Concordia-St. Paul got back into rhythm in the fourth set, and after the set was level at 11 each, the Golden Bears went on a 6-2 run to make it 17-13 in favor of CSP, and traded points until the finish. The Golden Bears hit .325 in the period, and won 25-18, forcing a five-set match, which would be the third straight five-set match for the Mustangs.
The Mustangs came out firing in the final set, leading 6-1 with two kills from
Mya Krystosek. The Golden Bears responded with five unanswered points, and the set would remain close until the very end. Krystosek again provided the Mustangs with four kills then on, and SMSU won the fifth set 15-13, while hitting .286.
The Mustangs host another match on Saturday, Oct. 11, at 2 p.m. against Winona State in the PE Gym. The match will be available to stream on the NSIC Network, and tickets along with more information can be found at smsumustangs.com/sports/womens-volleyball.
