Volleyball’s Hard Fought Battle Ends In 2-3 Loss

After taking the hard fought 2-0 lead on Principia College, the Blue Jays fell 2-3 on Tuesday night. The Blue Jays are now 6-5 overall and 3-3 in St. Louis Intercollegiate Athletic Conference (SLIAC) play. Principia tightens the hold on the number three spot in the SLIAC with this win, while Westminster moves into the 5th spot.

“We would have liked to come out with the win; we let this one slip through our fingers,” said Coach Curtis Madson.

The Blue Jays held the 17-12 lead in set one before Principia went on a 5-0 streak to tie the set. They battled back and forth, but the Blue Jays managed to pull out the 25-22 win.

The Blue Jays grabbed the 25-23 win for the second set, but after a ten minute intermission, the Blue Jays were unable to grab the third set win (20-25).

The Blue Jays stayed neck-in-neck with Principia in game four until they went on a four point run to put take the 15-10 lead. The Blue Jays were unable to recover and fell 16-25.

Game five was crucial for the Blue Jays, but Principia went on a five point run to give them the 7-4 advantage. Multiple kills by the Blue Jays brought them back into the game and within one point (11-12), but the Blue Jays were not able to stop Principia and fell 13-15.

“That is what an experienced team does; they keep grinding it out until the match it over. We are young, but we will get there,” commented Coach Madson.

Freshman Riley Lawrence led the Blue Jays with 17 kills on 44 attacks. Freshman Amanda Kiso led the Blue Jay’s attack percentage with a .400 and finished with two solo blocks and seven block assists. Freshman setter Kayla Reeg finished the night with 45 of the team’s 46 assists, and sophomore libero Caroline Will dug 24 balls for the Blue Jays.

The Blue Jays will head to Louisville, Kentucky this Saturday, September 28, to take on Spalding University at 11:00 a.m. Spalding is currently in 6th with a 1-2 SLIAC record.