Volleyball falls twice during final day of CIT

AUSTIN, Texas – Concordia University Wisconsin's defense at the net was the bright spot during its second and third matches of the season, but it was not enough as it was swept twice during the final day of the Concordia Invitational Tournament.

The Falcons dropped their first match of the day 3-0 (14-25, 23-25, 8-25) to host Concordia University Texas before losing 3-0 (12-25, 16-25, 19-25) to Concordia University Ann Arbor.

CUW's offense was more balanced than its season opener on Friday night. Senior Amanda Stahmann (Van Dyne, Wis.) led the team with 12 kills, while Gabrielle VanBeaver (Green Bay, Wis.) added nine of her own. Sophomore Carley Valentine (De Pere, Wis.) assisted on 31 kills during the two matches and four players had double-digit digs.

The opening match of the day for the Falcons was tight in the second set, 25-23, but the first and third sets belonged to CUT. There were 11 ties and three lead changes, but the majority of the match belonged to the Tornados.

CUT finished with a .239 attacking percentage compared to CUW's .053. The Falcons finished with 27 kills and 22 attacking errors.

During the final match of CIT for the Falcons, the offense did not improve as they had a -.035 attacking percentage and more errors than kills. A bright spot for CUW was its front line defense, which had 15 blocks during the tournament.

CUW continues its demanding road schedule with the Barker Classic in Bloomington, Ill. The Falcons are scheduled to play Eureka College and Illinois Wesleyan University on Sept. 7 prior to playing Knox College and Illinois College on Sept. 8.