ST. PAUL, Minn. – Securing its second sweep in as many days, the College of Saint Benedict volleyball team downed St. Catherine University in straight sets behind scores of 25-20, 25-21, 25-16 Saturday, Oct. 10. The victory boosts CSB to 9-9 overall, 3-2 in Minnesota Intercollegiate Athletic Conference (MIAC) play. St. Kate's stumbled to 4-14 overall, 2-3 in conference contests.
Senior Kali Jones (Annandale, Minn./Annandale) powered the Bennies offense, as she led the match with 12 kills on a scorching .458 attack percentage. Jones committed just one attack error on 24 swings. Sophomore Karley Dunham (Baxter, Minn./Brainerd) was flawless with nine kills in 15 behind no attack errors, finishing with a .600 clip. Senior Kate Stadum (Brainerd, Minn./Brainerd) added six kills.
Orchestrating a hot-hitting attack that finished with a .250 team attack percentage, junior Izzy Torve (Loretto, Minn./Orono) and sophomore Ginny Schuler (Maple Grove, Minn./Maple Grove) posted 16 and 14 assists, respectively.
Stadum, who collected her first double-double last night, led the team with a career-high 13 digs. Jones chipped in 10, while Torve and sophomore Brooke Siegle (Norwood Young America, Minn./Waconia) each tallied seven. Dunham and sophomore Sydney Elliott (St. Paul, Minn./Cretin-Derham Hall) led the team with three blocks apiece.
Saint Benedict opened the match strong, as four straight points put the visitors up early, 4-1. Stadum followed a service error by SCU with an ace, and Dunham and Wollum paired up for a block on the ensuing point. Dunham downed a ball sent over early to cap off the stretch for the Bennies.
St. Kate's rallied back and controlled the tightly contested set the rest of the way, but a block by Andries and Elliott shifted momentum as the Bennies went ahead, 17-16. After a Wildcats kill leveled the score at 17, a service error gave CSB the edge. Schuler connected with Stadum for a kill to follow, making it a two-point lead, 19-17, as the home team burned a timeout. Remaining within a pair, Dunham downed a dish from Torve and an attack error set up set point for Saint Ben's, 24-20. St. Catherine called its final timeout, but another miscue by the Wildcats finalized the opening set after the break in favor of the Bennies, 25-20.
All tied at 14, Saint Benedict rattled off five straight points to take control. Schuler found Jones for a kill and Stadum added one after a Wildcats attack error. Andries downed a dish from Schuler before another SCU made it 19–14 in favor of the visitors.
CSB held control through the end of the set, as Dunham roped down a set from Torve to secure set two, 25-21.
Up one, 13-12, the Bennies once again used a run to pull ahead. Jones ignited the run with a kill, followed by an attack error by SCU. Elliott and Jones rejected a Wildcat attack on the ensuing point before Jones tacked on two more kills to her stellar night. A bad set by the home team closed the run in favor of Saint Ben's, 19-12.
Saint Benedict coasted to the sweep, as a Dunham kill locked in set three, 25-16.
CSB turns its attention to a battle with Saint Mary's University Saturday, Oct. 17. First serve is set for 5 p.m.
