Box Score
ST. PAUL, Minn. – The Concordia University volleyball team (27-1, 19-0 NSIC) swept the St. Cloud State Huskies (13-14, 7-12 NSIC) to claim the NSIC title outright. The Golden Bears extended their winning streak to 25 as they secured their 11th conference title in 11 years.
Concordia secures the top seed of the NSIC Volleyball Tournament and will play the eighth seed (to be determined) on Wednesday, November 20 at 7 p.m. at Gangelhoff Center. A first round win secures the right to host the semifinals and championship match next Saturday and Sunday, November 23-24.
Erienne Lauersdorf paced the Golden Bears with 13 kills and an impressive .600 attack percentage. Emily McDonoughpicked up her 10th double-double of the season with 11 kills and 12 digs. Heather Schiller joined them in double digits with 10 kills. Amanda Konetchy facilitated the offense 40 assists as the Golden Bears hit .360 as a team.
Concordia used an early 5-0 run to build a 9-3 lead in the first, but the Huskies battled back to cut the lead to one at 16-15. The Golden Bears took control from that point on by scoring nine of the last ten points in the set to take the set 25-16.
The Golden Bears turned a 4-4 tie in the second set into a 10-5 advantage on the shoulders of Erienne Lauersdorf and Heather Schiller as the two combined for five straight kills for CU. Once again, SCSU closed the gap to one at 15-14 but they weren't able to get over the hump. Concordia responded by going on a 7-1 run to grab a 22-15 lead. Two straight kills from St. Cloud State cut it back to five, but three in a row for the Golden Bears gave CU a 2-0 lead in the match with a 25-17 set win.
The third set was all Concordia from start to finish as they scored 16 of the first 20 to run out to a quick 12 point lead. The Huskies were unable to cut the CU lead to single digits as the Golden Bears cruised to a 25-11 win and a 3-0 sweep.
A Golden Bear win tomorrow at #3 Minnesota Duluth would finish off the Golden Bears' seventh perfect NSIC regular season under Brady Starkey. Concordia has won 33 straight in conference play dating back to their last trip to Duluth last season as the Bulldogs won in four sets.
