SUPERIOR, Wis. — The Augsburg University volleyball team opened play at the University of Wisconsin-Superior Stinger Classic with a 3-1 victory over the University of Wisconsin-La Crosse 3-1 on Friday. Augsburg finished with 52 kills and eight service aces, compared with 46 kills and five aces for UW-La Crosse. The Auggies recorded a season-high total of 52 kills in the match.
THE BASICS
SCORE: Augsburg def. UW-La Crosse 3-1 (25-23, 20-25, 25-21, 25-21)
LOCATION: Mertz Mortorelli Gym, Superior, Wis.
RECORDS: Augsburg 2-6 overall, UW-La Crosse 3-4 overall
HOW IT HAPPENED
The opening set moved back and forth early, with the Auggies using a
Lola Pilon ace and an Eagles attack error to build a 6-4 lead before the teams worked to a 15-15 tie. UW-La Crosse moved ahead 19-17, but
Lilly Wynn recorded kills on the Auggies' next two points,
Aloaha Ricke served an ace for a 20-19 lead and, after the Eagles got back within 21-20, another Wynn kill made it 22-20. Wynn added a kill for 23-21,
Gwynn Gorter put Augsburg University at set point at 24-22, and after Grace Nommensen's kill cut it to 24-23,
Jovial King's kill from Pilon gave the Auggies a 25-23 set win. With 11 kills in the match, Wynn has tallied at least 11 kills in three consecutive matches.
After the second set moved to a 3-3 tie on Wynn's kill, UW-La Crosse scored five straight points behind kills from Maddy Wilson and Sydney Marx, a Lexi Champeau ace and two Auggies attack errors to take an 8-3 lead. Augsburg University later answered a 14-6 deficit with three straight points, getting a Wynn kill, a Ricke ace and a
Taliah Triggs kill to make it 14-9, and Pilon's ace pulled the Auggies within 17-12 before the Eagles moved back ahead 22-14. Augsburg cut into the gap again with a Megan Jasperson service error, a Grace Nommensen attack error and Ricke kill to reach 22-17, then got a Wynn kill and a Megan Lund bad set to make it 23-19, but UW-La Crosse finished the set 25-20 on a Grace Turlais kill.
The Eagles built an early 12-6 lead in the third set before
Ameerah Rogers helped Augsburg start back with two kills during a three-point push. The Auggies kept cutting into the margin, getting kills from Triggs and a Pilon service ace to move within 15-14, then tied the set at 17-17 on a block by King and
Gwynn Gorter and Rogers kill. After the teams traded points to 20-20, Rogers put Augsburg University back in front with a kill, and the Auggies reached set point at 24-20 behind a block by Gorter and Triggs, a Triggs kill and an Eagles attack error. UW-La Crosse extended the set once, but Wynn finished it with a kill from King for a 25-21 Auggie win. Augsburg achieved a season-high total of nine blocks in the match and exceeded its season average of 5.0 blocks.
After trailing 4-2, the Auggies won seven of the next eight rallies to move in front 9-5 in the fourth set, with Pilon, King and
Gwynn Gorter recording kills during the stretch and
Elise Uphoff adding a service ace. UW-La Crosse worked back within 11-10, but Rogers answered with a kill before
New New served Augsburg University through four straight points, including a Triggs kill, a service ace and a Wynn kill for a 16-10 lead. The Eagles later cut the margin to 20-19, but the Auggies responded with a UW-La Crosse attack error, a Ricke kill and a
Maggie Lile ace to reach 23-19. Rogers put down a kill for set point at 24-21, and Rogers and Ricke combined on the final block to close the set 25-21.
AUGSBURG TOP PERFORMERS
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Jovial King: Team-high 42 assists, 13 digs, 3 block assists, 3 kills
- Reached the 250 set assists milestone, now totaling 269.
- Surpassed the 100 digs milestone, now with a total of 104.
- Seventh straight assist-dig double-double and the 27th of her Auggie career, with a season-high 42 assists and 13 digs.
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Maggie Lile: Team-high 17 digs, 2 assists, 1 service ace
- Achieved a total of 113 digs this season, reaching the 100-dig milestone.
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Gwynn Gorter: Team-high and career-high 6 blocks, including 1 solo, 8 kills on .304 hitting, 11.5 points
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Aloaha Ricke: Team-high 13 points, 10 kills, 2 service aces
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Lilly Wynn: Team-high 11 kills, 12.5 points, 2 blocks, including 1 solo
UP NEXT
Augsburg faces Marian University (12 p.m.) and UW-Superior (2 p.m.) at the Stinger Classic on Saturday.
