ST. JOSEPH, Minn. – After a long stretch without a win against St. Thomas, the College of Saint Benedict volleyball team seems to have found the Tommies number. Thursday night, CSB tries for its third straight win against UST – and the stakes are high.
 
Saint Benedict hosts St. Thomas at 7 p.m. Thursday, Nov. 1, in a MIAC Semifinal match in Claire Lynch. CSB finished 10-2 in the regular season to earn a bye in Tuesday's quarterfinals, and the Tommies – the third seed – swept St. Olaf Tuesday to advance to Thursday's second round.
 
Since 2000, CSB is 5-24 against the Tommies, three of those five wins have come in the last four seasons, including five straight. Heading in Thursday, CSB has won three of its last five meetings against UST, including the 2017 MIAC Tournament championship match on the Tommies' home court in St. Paul.
 
This marks the second meeting of the two teams this year. CSB hosted St. Thomas on Sept. 19 in the second conference match of the season for both teams. The Tommies came out hot and won the first set, but Saint Benedict settled into its offense and won the next three sets – which were all very close. CSB fell 25-20 in the first set, then won three straight 25-21, 25-23 and 25-20. Lauren Mathews had a kill and Bridget McDonald had a service ace in set three to stop a 4-1 UST run and gave CSB the 2-1 advantage.
 
CSB's play at the net was key in September's win, as it finished with 25 total blocks to the Tommies' 10. Mathews finished with seven total blocks, Madison Weiss had six and Hunter Weiss had five. Mathews, Hunter Weiss and Liz Schultz all finished with double-digit kills, and Katie Koch recorded a career-high 48 assists in the win.
 
Saint Benedict heads into Thursday's match having won 10 of its last 11 games, while UST is on a nine-match winning streak and has won 12 of its last 13. Each team's last loss heading into the conference semifinals came to nationally ranked Gustavus; St. Thomas' on Oct. 10 and CSB's on Oct. 20. The Tommies wrapped up the regular season with a 3-2 win against UW-Eau Claire, which is currently ranked 15^th in Division III.
 
The winner of Thursday's match faces the winner of the Augsburg/Gustavus semifinal at 7 p.m. Saturday, Nov. 3, in the conference championship match. The Auggies came back from a 2-0 deficit to beat Bethel 3-2 Tuesday on the Royals' home court.