TACOMA, Wash. – As the 2023 season opened, the College of Saint Benedict (1-1) had a remarkable come-from-behind five-set win over Pacific Lutheran before dropping a five-set decision to the tournament host Puget Sound at the Puget Sound Premiere Tournament on Friday (Sept. 1).

In the opening match up, CSB rallied for a 3-2 (25-17, 23-25, 20-25, 25-22, 15-9) win over Pacific Lutheran (0-2) as first-year outside hitter Kali Jones led the Bennies with 14 kills while junior setter Audrey Spolidoro had a double-double (30 assists, 15 digs).

In the second matchup, CSB opened a 2-1 set lead before host school Puget Sound (2-0) rallied to defeat CSB, 3-2 (25-23, 21-25, 22-25, 25-11, 15-11).

By the Numbers
Through the two games, CSB is hitting .159 with 99 kills on 347 attacks while averaging 7.8 assists per game. In the first two matches in 2023, the Bennies recorded 18 service aces, 157 digs (15.7 per game) and 22 blocks (2.2 per set). Individually, first-year standout Kali Jones had 20 kills on 80 attacks. Five CSB players recorded at least 17 kills with sophomore Mackenzie Knofczynski recording 19 on 40 attacks for a team-best .325 hitting mark. Senior defensive specialist Mackenzie McDonald had a team-high 38 digs while junior setter Audrey Spolidoro added 34 digs to go with her team-leading 62 assists. Spolidoro had two double doubles and now has 25 in her career. She is also just two set assists from 1,600 for her career as she sits at 1,598.

Game 1 - CSB 3 Pacific Lutheran 2
Jones had 14 kills while Spolidoro had a double-double (30 assists, 15 digs) to lead Saint Benedict to a come-from-behind 3-2 (25-17, 23-25, 20-25, 25-22, 15-9) victory over Pacific Lutheran (0-1) in the season opener at the Puget Sound Premiere Tourney.

After winning the opening set, 25-17, CSB lost two straight sets by scores of 23-25 and 20-25. Then, the Bennies rallied with a 25-22 fourth set win and a 15-9 decision to move to 1-0 on the season. 

Jones hit .152 on the match with 14 kills on 46 attacks to total 16.5 points and lead CSB. Senior middle blocker P. Andries had 13 points, including nine kills on 24 attacks for a .292 hitting mark. Senior outside hitter Emma Guest added nine kills and hit .206 while registering 17 digs. In addition, Knofczynski added eight kills on 16 attacks for a team-best .375 hitting mark.

CSB grabbed a 1-0 set lead as Guest had five kills on 10 attacks in a 25-17 win to open the game. She led a solid team effort which included 12 kills on 32 attacks for a .281 hitting mark in the set. CSB had two service aces, two blocks and three attack errors.

In the second set, PLU had a .228 (16K-5E-48A) to .136 (12K-6E-44A) hitting advantage for CSB to earn the 25-23 win. PLU opened a 7-4 lead before the Bennies worked the set even at 8-8. However, PLU had a 4-1 run for a 12-9 advantage and was able to maintain the edge to gain the set win and tie the score at 1-1.

 In the third set, Pacific Lutheran had the advantage with a .184 (14K-7E-38A) hitting mark to just .111 (8K-4E-36A) for CSB. In the set, PLU jumped to an 8-2 lead and led, 17-8, before the Bennies rallied to within 19-16 before falling, 25-20.

CSB turned things around in the fourth and fifth sets, spurred by the play of Jones, Knofczynski and P. Andries. The Bennies hit .237 (14K-5E-38A) to .205 (13K-5E-39A) by the Lutes in the fourth set  The Bennies jumped to an 8-2 lead after a pair of kills from Jones. Another kill by Jones pushed the lead to 10-4. CSB had a 17-12 lead after P. Andries converted at the net. After the Lutes rallied to within 18-17, CSB had kills by Jones and P. Andries for a 21-18 lead. Knofczynski's kill gave CSB a 25-22 win and a 2-2 tie in sets.

After trailing 4-2 in set five, CSB had an 8-3 run to take an 10-7 lead. A kill from P. Andries provided CSB with a 12-8 margin and the Bennies closed it out 15-9 when Knofczynski had a kill and Brooke Andries (seven kills) provided a block on match point. In that final set, CSB shot .211 (5K-1E-19A) to just .063 (7K-5E-32A) for Pacific Lutheran.

Game 2 - Puget Sound 3 Saint Benedict 2
Puget Sound fell behind two sets to one before rallying to defeat the Bennies, 3-2 (25-23, 21-25, 22-25, 25-11 and 15-11) in CSB's second game of the day.

CSB was led by Knofczynski who had 11 kills and four blocks. B. Andries had 10 kills to reach double-digits for the first time. P. Andries added nine kills and five blocks while Spolidoro recorded 32 set assists and 19 digs.

In the opening set, Puget Sound picked up a win by hitting .227 (14K-4E-44A) while CSB was at .171 (11K-4E-41A). Early on, the Bennies took a 6-3 lead before a 9-4 run by Puget Sound created a 12-10 advantage. The Loggers added another 9-6 run before holding off a late charge by CSB for the 25-23 set win.

The Bennies turned the momentum their way in the next two sets. In the second set, CSB hit .227 (15K-5E-44A) in a 25-21 victory. It was a set with seven ties including at 14-14, 18-18 and 19-19 before the Bennies had a three-point run for a 22-19 edge after Chaeli Haupert recorded a service ace. Then, Spolidori had a kill and an attack error by Puget Sound gave CSB the win and tied the game at 1-1.

In set three, the Bennies had nine kills but eight errors on 33 attacks yet still took a 25-22 win. Puget Sound also struggled hitting with nine kills and eight errors on 39 attacks. CSB opened on an 8-4 run off a B. Andries kill and McDonald's service ace. CSB also led, 19-14, before Puget Sound cut the margin to 20-18. CSB held onto the advantage and, with a set-ending kill by P. Andries, took a 2-1 lead in sets.

However, CSB momentum was halted by some hitting woes in set four as they dropped a 25-11 decision. The Bennies converted just five kills on 38 attacks with seven errors. Puget Sound hit .286 with 13 kills on 35 attacks and just three errors to draw even in sets at 2-2. In the final set, the Loggers jumped to a 5-2 lead before CSB had two points to cut the deficit to one point (5-4). But the Loggers responded with three straight points for an 8-4 lead. It was a margin too big for the Bennies to overcome. CSB drew within 8-6 but the Loggers opened an 11-7 lead and finished off the set at 15-11 to grab the game victory.   

Next on the Schedule
On Saturday, CSB will play two more nonconference games at the tourney. They will face Eastern University (2-0) at 11 a.m. and Adrian College (0-2) at 5 p.m.