Volleyball picks up hard fought road victory over Alverno

Volleyball picks up hard fought road victory over Alverno

MILWAUKEE – Concordia University Wisconsin was not going to leave Reiman Gymnasium without a victory on Friday evening. The Falcons earned a hard fought 3-1 (25-19, 25-27, 25-23, 25-14) Northern Athletics Conference victory over Alverno College.

As the Falcons have done all year, they played to the edge of each set. After dropping the second frame in extra points, they responded with a close third set win and a dominating final set to move up the league standings. The match featured 28 scoring ties and 15 lead changes.

CUW (5-17, 2-5 NAC) finished with a .184 attacking percentage, its highest in league play and fourth highest percentage this season. A collective effort allowed the Falcons to win their second match in the last three contests.

Stahmann (senior, Van Dyne, Wis.) smashed 11 kills, while junior Lauren Dumke (Wauwatosa, Wis.) and sophomore Hannah Griffiths (Antigo, Wis.) each had eight kills. Sophomore Carley Valentine (De Pere, Wis.) had a team-best 22 assists. Defensively, Kelsey Paramore (Tomahawk, Wis.) recorded a career-high-tying 17 digs and Stahmann ended the victory with two block solos and four block assists.

Emma Ortner had 18 kills and Reagan Owen assisted on 43 kills to lead all players, respectively. Six Inferno players recorded double-figure digs and Cali Trepp chipped in 17 kills.

The opening frame was an exchange of points early on until CUW busted a 12-12 tie with 7-3 scoring run to take command. The Falcons claimed the opening frame, 25-19, after the Inferno committed four-consecutive errors down the stretch.

Thirteen scoring ties and nine lead changes highlighted the second frame. With the score tied at 25-25, Michelle Lingle served an ace and Ortner smashed home the 27th point to even the match at a set apiece.

CUW fell behind 11-5 in the third set and again 22-19, but responded for an impressive set victory. Dumke and Stahmann spiked back-to-back kills and the Falcons exploited Inferno errors to pick up a 25-23 third frame win.

The final frame was all CUW as it led by as many as 11 points. The Falcons rattled off a 7-0 run early to take the wind of the Inferno. They continued to score until AC (3-16, 0-7 NAC) attacking errors concluded the match.

CUW will take a couple of days off from league play before host three-consecutive home matches inside the R. John Buuck Field House, beginning with an Oct. 10 match against Dominican University at 7 p.m.