Live Video/Stats

ST. JOSEPH, Minn. – The College of Saint Benedict volleyball team heads into its final stretch of conference play Saturday, Oct. 24 with a key match against Gustavus Adolphus College.
 
This match is comes after a big 3-2 win over St. Scholastica earlier this week. The Blazers will face off against the Gusties in the Claire Lynch Hall at 3 p.m. with hopes of taking advantage of their final three games of the season.
 
About the Gusties: After starting their season 0-2, the Gusties have won 22 consecutive games and haven't lost since Sept. 4. The Gusties are undefeated in conference play at 8-0 and will be heading into their final away game of the season. With three conference games remaining, the Gusties look to finish their season with their winning streak still intact. On top of this winning streak, the Gusties have won 38 of their last 41 sets, including a 3-2 victory over Concordia Friday night. Setter Nora Holtan is second in the MIAC with 725 assists.
 
Last Year: Last season, the Blazers faced off against the Gusties twice and walked away with a 3-1 win in the first match and took a 3-0 win in the first round of the MIAC Tournament. In their first matchup of the season, the Blazers took a 25-18 win in the first set, before the Gusties came back to take a 25-20 win in the next set. From here, the Blazers finished the night with a 25-17 and 25-16 win in the final two sets. Laura Schmitt finished the night with 16 kills and 16 digs. In the next match, the Blazers started the night with a 25-18 win. They went on to take a 28-26 win in the second set and finished the night with a 25-18 win in the third set. Schmitt led the offense with 10 kills and finished with a team-high of 14 digs.
 
The Storyline: The Blazers have three remaining games of the season, which are all conference games. After winning their last match against St. Scholastica, they look to build up a winning streak as they near the postseason. The Gusties have also built up a big winning streak, which they will be looking to continue as they also near the end of their regular season. The Blazers have home-court advantage as they fight the No. 1-ranked team in the MIAC.
 
Who to Watch: Schmitt currently leads the Blazers with 314 kills and sits at fourth place in the MIAC with 3.57 kills per set. Lauren Mathews also sits with 1.99 kills per set, and leads the Blazers with .86 blocks per set. Megan Pekarek also leads the MIAC with 9.47 assists per set and Meghan Barta sits with a team-high of 354 digs.
 
Last Time Out: In their last match, the Blazers took a close 3-2 win over the Saints. The Blazers started the night with a 25-23 win in the first set followed by a 26-24 win in the second set. From here, the Saints came back to take the third set by a score of 26-24 and took a 25-12 win in the fourth set. The Blazers then finished the night with a 15-12 win in the fifth set. Schmitt led the Blazers with 15 kills and Mary Franz added another 13. Pekarek totaled 50 assists on the night and Barta finished the night with 19 digs.