SIOUX FALLS, S.D. - No. 6 Augustana volleyball dropped a 5-set heartbreaker Friday night against No. 2 Concordia-St. Paul (25-20, 25-22, 17-25, 13-25, 9-15).

Augustana came out of the locker room looking like a team in a mission. The Vikings jumped out to a quick 5-1 lead in the first set before Concordia-St. Paul tied the match at seven. Augustana didn't seem phased, regaining the lead and making it 14-9. CSP made a late run scoring five of the final eight points, but it wasn't enough with Augustana taking set one 25-20.

Concordia-St. Paul took the first point on the second set but Augustana quickly made their move a grabbed a 6-3 lead. The Vikings held their lead until midway through the set when CSP tied the match at 14. After ties at 16,17, 19 and 20, the Vikings were finally able to break away and take the set 25-22.

The Golden Bears came out of the locker room following the intermission and jumped out to a quick 8-2 lead. Augustana got as close as three at 8-5 but ultimately lost the set 25-17.

The fourth set was a nail bitter throughout with Concordia taking an early 4-1 lead. The Vikings battled back to get within one at 6-5 and finally tied the match at 14. The two teams were neck-and-neck the rest of the way with seven ties and three lead changes. Augustana looked like they were going to end their 21-match losing streak to the Golden Bears when they took a 22-19 lead, but Concordia was able to score the final four points and take set four 25-23.

Augustana was up early in the fifth set, scoring the first four points and forcing CSP to take a timeout. Following the break CSP scored nine of the next 11 points to take a 9-6 lead. Augustana made it close at 10-8 but CSP took the set 15-9 and the match 3-2.

Viking of the Match
Bailey Koch was all over the court for the Vikings with 13 kills on 31 attacks. She had a team-high six blocks and added four digs. This was her eighth straight match leading the team in blocks.

Viking Notables
• The Vikings last three matches against CSP have gone 5-sets
• This was the Vikings first 5-set loss of the season and their first loss against an AVCA Top-5 team
• Anna Sykora set a new career-high with 55 assists. Her previous high was 54 against Southwest Minnesota State back on Sept. 15
• Tahlyr Banks led the team with 21 digs
• Courtney Place led the team with 16 kills
• The Vikings hit .237 on the night and had 64 kills as a team

Up Next
Augustana will be back at home Saturday at 3 p.m. against Minnesota State.