Falcons regroup in victory at Concordia Chicago

RIVER FOREST, Ill. – Concordia Wisconsin breezed through the opening set before things got more difficult from then on, but the result was positive during a 3-1 (25-8, 25-22, 24-26, 25-21) victory at Concordia Chicago on Wednesday night inside Geiseman Gymnasium.

THE BASICS
Final Score: Concordia Wisconsin 3, Concordia Chicago 1 (25-8, 25-22, 24-26, 25-21)
Location: Geiseman Gymnasium (River Forest, Ill.)
Records: Concordia Wisconsin 10-2, 3-0 NACC; Concordia Chicago 6-11, 1-3 NACC

HOW IT HAPPENED
- Concordia Wisconsin showed dominance in the opening set, winning 25-8, behind an impressive .455 at the net while limiting Concordia Chicago to -.120. As impressive as that was, it woke up the hosts for the next three sets for some competitive volleyball.
- The Falcons jumped in front 2-0 in the contest after putting together a quick 3-0 scoring run to close out the second set, which included a pair of kills. Junior Kelsey Kleba (Hartland, Wis.) smashed the winning point in the set.
- It nearly ended in a 3-0 sweep for the visitors, but four unanswered points by the hosts turned a 24-22 lead into a 26-24 set win by the Cougars. Of those four points, two were the result of errors by the Falcons.
- After a 6-6 tie, Concordia Wisconsin took the lead and never looked back in the fourth set building an eight-point cushion at one point.
- Junior Megan Mayer (Downers Grove, Ill.) paced the Falcons lineup with 12 kills and senior Amanda Schultz (North Prairie, Wis.) added 10 of her own. Seniors Haley Sedo (Neenah, Wis.) and Mackenzie Wockenfus (Appleton, Wis.) combined for 41 assists. Sedo served four the of the team's eight service aces in the match.
- The Falcons ended with 12 total blocks in the victory, thanks to Kleba who had seven blocks assists, freshman McKenna Nigl (Richland Center, Wis.) who recorded six block assists, and Schultz and junior Kendall Stribling (Hartland, Wis.) who each ended with four block assists.
- Freshman Madelyn Alton (Custer Park, Ill.) had 18 digs and Mayer tallied 17 digs for a double-double.
- Jaylynn Jonson led the Cougars attack with 12 kills, while Julia Spitelli had 10 kills. Nicoletta Crowley posted 25 assists and Elise Sombke dug 17 attack attempts.

MATCH NOTES
- Concordia Wisconsin hit .455 in the opening frame and .300 in the fourth set, but had a .083 and .000 attack percentage in the second and third stanzas.
- The Falcons have now won 12-straight matches over the Cougars, including five inside Geiseman Gymnasium.

NEXT ON THE SCHEDULE
- Concordia Wisconsin hosts Alverno on Friday at 7 pm in a NACC contest inside the R. John Buuck Field House.