Eau Claire, Wis. — The University of Wisconsin-Eau Claire earned two victories Saturday, defeating UW-Superior 3-1 before sweeping Gustavus Adolphus Adolphus College 3-0.
The Blugolds opened with a 24-26, 25-18, 25-15, 25-21 victory over Superior. After the Yellowjackets scored the final three points to win the first set, UW-Eau Claire took seven of eight rallies from a 15-15 tie in the second to move ahead 22-16. A 9-0 run extended the Blugolds' third-set lead from 14-12 to 23-12, with
Alex Kiebel serving eight straight points. In the fourth, UW-Eau Claire scored the final five points after falling behind 21-20, including back-to-back aces by Kiebel.
UW-Eau Claire finished the match with 64 kills, a .229 hitting percentage and nine blocks while holding Superior to 34 kills and a .074 hitting percentage.
Rachel Johnson recorded 25 kills, 15 digs, three block assists and 27.5 points.
Mya Cinnamo added 17 kills, five digs and three total blocks, while Kiebel had 35 assists, three aces and 10 digs.
Kaitlyn Erickson collected 23 digs.
Against Gustavus Adolphus, the Blugolds won 25-16, 25-23 and 26-24. UW-Eau Claire took seven of eight rallies to extend its opening-set lead from 15-11 to 22-12. The Blugolds erased a 19-16 deficit in the second set, moving ahead 20-19 during four straight points on
Alia Schlimgen's serve before
Brynlee Major ended the set with a kill from Kiebel. In the third, UW-Eau Claire used a 6-0 run to turn a 21-16 deficit into a 22-21 lead, and Johnson's kill completed the match.
The Blugolds hit .248 against Gustavus Adolphus and totaled 46 kills, 60 digs, nine blocks and six service aces. Johnson led UW-Eau Claire with 16 kills and 20 points while adding seven digs, three blocks and two aces. Cinnamo recorded 11 kills, Kiebel had a team-high 23 assists and 10 digs, and Erickson matched the team high with 13 digs.
At the conclusion of the tournament, the All-Tournament Team was voted on and announced by participating head coaches.
Rachel Johnson was named the tournament MVP while
Mya Cinnamo and
Kaitlyn Erickson were both named to the All-Tournament Team.
Up next, the Blugolds host St. Olaf College on Wednesday, Oct. 14, at 7 p.m. at The Sonnentag in Eau Claire, Wisconsin.
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