MANKATO, Minn. – Augustana volleyball defeated Minnesota State 3-1 Saturday afternoon, winning 20-25, 25-23, 25-16, 25-18. The Vikings hit .338 with 67 kills while holding MSU to a .204 hitting percentage and 44 kills.
The opening set stayed even through 7-7, with
Reagan Jansen,
Sydney Tims and
Kelby Opland helping AU trade early points. The Mavericks took the first multi-point lead on a Jaelyn LaPlante ace and an Avery Klein kill for 9-7, but
Abby Gruber and
Maya Wente kills kept AU within 12-10. The home side pushed the margin to 18-13 behind a Jadyn Lester ace and an Avery Rosenberg kill, then used two Klein kills and an Olivia Sturgis kill to move ahead 21-14. AU fought off set point three times with kills from Tims, Gruber and Opland before Lily Riese closed MSU's 25-20 set win.
Opland had three early kills as AU moved in front 8-5, but the Mavericks turned a 10-7 deficit into an 11-10 lead behind an AU service error and three AU miscues. Tims tied the set with a kill, and
Kiylah Franke served AU through the next four points, including two aces, while Wente and Jansen added kills for a 15-11 lead. AU stayed ahead down the stretch, reaching 23-19 on an Opland kill and 24-20 on a Jansen kill, before MSU scored three straight points to get within 24-23.
Lucy Belisle finished the set with a kill from Franke, giving AU a 25-23 win in the second set.
AU traded points early with the Mavericks before Jansen helped create separation, recording three kills during a stretch that moved the Vikings from a 6-6 tie to an 11-7 lead. MSU pulled within 11-10 on two kills and a service ace, but AU took the next six points, with Jansen serving two aces while Belisle and Gruber added kills for a 17-10 advantage. The teams exchanged points through the middle of the set, and AU kept the margin at least six behind kills from Opland, Belisle, Wente and Jansen. Jansen's block brought up set point at 24-16, and an MSU attack error closed the set for AU, 25-16.
AU moved in front 4-1 behind three Opland kills and a Jansen service ace, and Gruber's kill plus Belisle's block helped make it 7-3. The Mavericks cut the set to 7-6 on an Olivia Sturgis kill and back-to-back Kaelyn Wieland aces, but AU pushed back to 12-7 with kills from Wente and Gruber, a Jansen kill, an MSU attack error and a
Julia Blom ace. Jansen added three more kills as AU extended the margin to 20-12, and after the Mavericks got within 22-16, Jansen put down kills for 23-16 and 24-17 before Belisle closed the set at 25-18.
Reagan Jansen
- team-high 21.5 points
- team-high 17 kills on .381 hitting
- 14 digs
- 3 service aces
Kelby Opland
- 15 kills on .406 hitting
- 15.0 points
- 2 digs
Kiylah Franke
- team-high 32 assists
- 14 digs
- 2 service aces
Alexis Nelson
- team-high 17 digs
Abby Gruber
- 10 kills with no errors on 19 attempts
- .526 hitting percentage
- 2 blocks
Up Next
The Vikings return home to host Concordia-St. Paul on Friday, Sept. 18, at 6 p.m.
– GoAugie.com –
