Vikings Drop Huskies In Four Sets

SIOUX FALLS, SD -- Augustana defeated St. Cloud State in four sets after coasting in the first two, winning 25-18, 25-16, 22-25, 27-25.  The Vikings improve to 14-6, 8-3 in Northern Sun Intercollegiate Conference competition while the Huskies fall to 6-13 overall, 3-8 in NSIC action.

This is the fourth straight victory for the Vikings over St. Cloud State and Ashley Buckley is now 7-1 against the Huskies.

After a sluggish start, the Vikings circled the wagons and took the first set 25-18.  Taylor Hrdlichka paced the offense with six kills and a .400 hitting percentage, and the Vikings smashed 16 in the first stanza.  Julia Witt led an 8-0 Vikings run with two service aces and tallied three in the first set alone.

Augustana jumped out early and cruised to a 25-16 set win.  Courtney Ysker drilled five kills and hit .555 in the second set.  Taylor Hrdlichka chipped in with a couple blocks while Kayla Wallerich scooped up seven digs in the second set to reach double digits for the match.

The Huskies did not want to go quietly and took the third set 25-22.  The Vikings were held to a .089 attack percentage in the third set and committed eight attack errors.

The fourth set required extra points, but the Vikings sealed the deal with a 27-25 fourth-set victory.   The Vikings drilled 14 kills and hit .205 as a team and held the Huskies to just .080 for the fourth set.

Ysker finished with 17 kills and Hafemeyer tallied 15 for the match.  Hrdlichka and Jordan Spatenka each reached double digits with 11 and 10 kills, respectively.

Wallerich never subbed out and dug 23 balls while Grace Sanders scooped up 19 digs herself.

Marissa Johnson dished out 36 assists and 11 digs for her second consecutive double-double while Katie Niesen assisted on 10 kills in her limited action.

The Vikings hit the road next week starting on Tuesday, Oct. 16, at Wayne State.

Courtesy:  Augustana College