ST. CLOUD, Minn. – Following a 3-1 defeat at the hands of sixth-ranked Minnesota Duluth on Friday night, the Concordia University volleyball team responded with a convincing 3-0 blanking over St. Cloud State on Saturday afternoon. The fourth-ranked Golden Bears won by scores of 25-22, 25-15 and 25-11, improving to 11-3 overall and 5-2 in the NSIC.

Kayla Koenecke (Delano, Minn.) led all players with 11 kills and a .450 attack percentage (11-2-20). She also collected seven digs, two blocks, two assists and two aces for 14 points. Libero Cassie Weaver (Lakeville, Minn.) posted a game-high 15 digs, while Amanda Konetchy (Victoria, Minn.) amassed 32 assists leading to a .263 team attack percentage. Kara Pioske (Waconia, Minn.) was one dig shy of a double-double as she collected 10 kills and nine digs.

Concordia took an early lead in the opening set at 6-5, but the Huskies scored four unanswered points for a 9-6 lead. They held on to the lead until an attack error gave the Golden Bears a 15-14 advantage. St. Cloud State regained the lead at 19-18 on a kill by Ellie Dietzen, but CU collected seven of the next 11 points for the win. There were four lead changes and eight ties in the set.

The Golden Bears controlled the second set from the get-go and led 9-2 early on. A service error brought the Huskies within five at 17-12, but Concordia went on to score eight of the final 11 points for the convincing 25-15 victory.

The third set started out promising for the home team as St. Cloud led 3-0, but Concordia went on a 5-to-0 run and never trailed the rest of the set. The Huskies would tie the score at 8-8 until CU claimed 17 of the last 20 points.

Concordia held St. Cloud State to a .000 attack percentage, facing 25 kills and 25 errors. The Golden Bears also posted eight blocks compared to two by the Huskies.

CU returns home next weekend for a pair of NSIC showdowns. The Golden Bears will take on Augustana on Friday night at 7:00 p.m. and then face No. 20 Wayne State on Saturday at 4:30 p.m.