EAU CLAIRE, Wis. -- The College of Saint Benedict went 1-1 on the first day of the UW-Eau Claire tournament topping Finlandia 3-0 and falling to defending national champion and #13 ranked UW-Eau Claire in a five set thriller. CSB will wrap up tournament play tomorrow taking on UW-Stout and Lakeland University.

Against Finlandia, CSB jumped out to a quick 9-4 lead and never looked back. The Bennies rattled off the final nine points in a row and hit .471 in the frame to take a quick 25-11 first set win. In the second set, Saint Ben's again jumped out to a 20-11 lead but Finlandia put together a run to cut the score to 23-18. The Bennies utilized a Finlandia serving error and a kill by LaRae Kram to seal the second set win. In the third set, Finlandia led CSB 17-11, but Gabby Heying rattled off six serves in a row and put the Bennies up 20-18. The two teams traded points until CSB was able to capitalize on two Finlandia hitting miscues to seal the 25-23 win.

Heying led the Bennies with 13 kills and nine digs. Emma Guest and Mackenzie Knofczynski both had efficient outings, each hitting over .400 for the match. Guest had eight kills on 14 swings, with just two errors, while Knofczynski finished with six kills on 12 swings with just one error. Audrey Spolidoro dished out 29 assists, while Mackenzie McDonald led all players with 19 digs. 

Against #13 ranked UW-Eau Claire, the Blugolds jumped out to an early 5-0 lead and made quick work of the first two sets posting 25-14 and 25-18 wins. Saint Ben's wasn't done yet and battled in a tightly contested third set where neither team could extend its lead to more than three. CSB was able to score the final three points of the set off a Guest kill and two Blugold miscues, securing the 25-23 win. The fourth set found the Bennies with a early 10-4 lead which forced an Eau Claire time out. CSB was able to hold off the defending national champions and claim a 25-22 win and force the deciding fifth set. The final set was a battle until the end. The Bennies pulled within one at 11-10, but the Blugolds hung on to win a 15-12 thriller.

Leading the Bennies against UW-Eau Claire was Heying, who registered 15 kills on 42 attack attempts, with just five errors. She added 12 digs, good for her seventh kill-dig double-double of the season. Guest and Grace Holm added 10 and nine kills respectively for CSB, while newcomer Lauren Werner posted a career-high eight kills and Knofczynski chipped in six kills. Spolidoro dished out 43 assists, her fifth match with 40+ assists this season, and defensive duo of McDonald and Chaeli Haupert teamed up to combine for 29 digs.

Saint Ben's second and final day of tournament action begins Saturday at 1 p.m. when the Bennies take on UW-Stout.