ST. JOSEPH, MINN. --The tears of relief in the eyes of Audrey Spolidoro and the weary smile on the face of Kali Jones told you all you needed to know about the battle the College of Saint Benedict volleyball team had just been through Tuesday night.
But – despite blowout losses in sets two and four and facing match-point elimination in a back-and-forth set five – the fourth-seeded Bennies found a way to top No. 5 seed Augsburg, 3-2, in an MIAC quarterfinal matchup at a raucous Claire Lynch Hall.
The Bennies won the thriller against Augsburg by scores of 28-26, 8-25, 25-23, 13-25 and 16-14.
"It was do or die and we weren't going to die," said Jones, a sophomore outside hitter who finished with a team-best 15 kills and added 20 digs for her 22nd career-double double - 14th this season. "There was no quit in us tonight. We were going to leave it all out there. We had nothing to lose."
That attitude has now carried CSB (13-11) to a fifth straight win and into a semifinal matchup against top-seed Gustavus (20-9) at 7 p.m. Thursday (Nov. 14) in St. Peter, Minn.
"There were obviously a lot of emotions out there tonight," said Spolidoro, a senior setter who finished with 37 set assists, 23 digs and six kills. "I was thinking about how this has been my home for four years, and this was probably the last time I'd play on my home court. I wanted to end on a good note," said Spolidoro, who had her 54th career double-double.
CSB coach
Nicole Hess praised the poise Spolidoro displayed, especially in the decisive fifth set in which neither team led by more than two. The Auggies, who finished their season 16-14 overall, took a 14-13 lead and were serving for the win. But the Bennies rallied to claim the final three points.
"I can't say enough about the leadership Audrey provided in some really big moments," said Hess, whose team began the season 3-9 but has now won 10 of its last 12. "To be able to stay composed with all that this match meant, after two sets that were blowouts and with the way that set five swung back-and-forth, was so crucial. She really held everyone together."
CSB took set one, 28-26, but struggled after the side change, falling behind 12-1 in set two and losing, 25-8. The pattern repeated itself when the Bennies won set three, 25-23, but trailed 8-0 and 13-1 in a set four Augsburg ultimately won 25-13.
"I'm not sure what that was," Jones said. "It felt like that side was kind of cursed. But we finally broke it in the last set."
Indeed, the Bennies started set five on their more successful side, but continued to hold strong, even after the switch midway through. Jones and sophomore middle blocker
McKenna Moehrle each had three kills in the final set.
Moehrle finished the match with 11 for her 16th double-digit kills game this season.
"We've learned how to work together as a team as the season has gone on," Spolidoro said. "And tonight, we did what we needed to do."
The victory earned CSB another shot at Gustavus. The Bennies fell 3-1 (15-25, 22-25, 25-14, 14-25) to the Gusties when the two teams met on Oct. 26 at Claire Lynch Hall. The Bennies, which hold a 22-20 MIAC record all-time in tourney play, hold a 3-2 advantage in playoff matches against the Gusties all-time. CSB picked up wins over Gustavus in the 2006 semifinals, 2011 quarterfinals, and 2014 quarterfinals, while the Gusties have won the last two playoff meetings in the 2018 championship and 2022 semis.
The winner on Thursday (Nov. 14) will advance to meet the winner of the other semifinal between No. 3 seed Bethel and No. 2 seed St. Catherine in the conference title match, which is scheduled for 7 p.m. Saturday on the home court of the high seed with the MIAC's automatic bid to the NCAA Division III playoffs on the line.
"We just have to take the same approach we did tonight," Jones said. "Give it our all and hold nothing back. We know it will be a challenge, but we're looking forward to playing Gustavus again."
