FAYETTE, Iowa – The Concordia University volleyball team (10-2, 3-1 NSIC) won their third straight with a sweep of Upper Iowa (7-5, 2-2 NSIC) on Tuesday night. The Golden Bears improve to 14-0 all-time against the Peacocks.
The Concordia defense was stifling as they limited UIU to only 25 kills and a .122 hitting percentage, keeping the Peacocks at .156 or below in each of the three sets. The Golden Bear attack only managed to hit .228 but were aided by six service aces.
Anna Schlaak was once again the focal point of the offense for CU as she led the team with 14 kills along with six digs. No other Golden Bears finished in double figures in kills but
Mariya Sampson and
Riley Hanson each chipped in eight. Sampson was impressive with her serve for the second consecutive match as she put up of four service aces for the second match in a row to bring her to a team-high 16 on the year.
Kasey Williams had another double-double from the setter position with 37 assists and a team-best 13 digs. Her 11.81 assists per set is good for fourth in the NSIC while her 3.19 digs rank second on the team on the young season.
Alex Duxbury also added 10 digs for CU.
Hailey Brown fell just a kill short of a double-double as she finished with nine kills and 10 digs in a losing effort for UIU. Kelsey Hinrichs chipped in 10 digs as well.
After Concordia built a 9-4 lead in the first set, Upper Iowa battled back to make it a contest. UIU claimed the lead at 15-14 and again at 16-15 but were unable to hang on as Concordia rolled past to take the set 25-21. Schlaak was fed early and often as she collected nine kills on a whopping 17 attempts in the set.
Concordia carried momentum into the second set as they took six straight points after UIU took the first point of the set. The Peacocks never really recovered as the Golden Bears didn't let the lead sink below four the rest of the way. The lead would grow to as much as seven as CU cruised to a 2-0 lead with a 25-18 set win. Hanson led the way with five kills on just seven attempts in the set.
The third set played out much in the same way as the second as Concordia built a quick 6-1 lead they would not relinquish. The lead eventually hit double digits at 20-9 as CU finished off the match with a 25-16 win to complete the sweep.
Concordia will look to extend their winning streak on the road this weekend as they travel to North Dakota to take on U-Mary and Minot State on Friday and Saturday, respectively.
