Friday, November 21
8:00 p.m. - Gangelhoff Center - St. Paul, Minn.
No. 4 seed #9 Nebraska-Kearney (32-4) vs. No. 1 seed #1 Concordia University (33-1)
CU 3, UNK 2: BOX SCORE
RECAP: ST. PAUL, Minn. - The Concordia University volleyball team (33-1) escaped their toughest challenge of the season to advance to the Championship round of the NCAA Central Region Tournament. The Golden Bears rallied back from a 2-1 deficit to claim a 3-2 win over Nebraska-Kearney (32-4), the tournament's #4 seed and ranked #9 in the nation (20-25, 25-21, 23-25, 25-13, 15-10). For the fifth consecutive season, the Golden Bears will be matched up with the Bulldogs of Minnesota Duluth in the Championship game, which will be served up at 7:30 p.m. at the Gangelhoff Center.
"(Nebraska-Kearney) gave us everything they had," said Concordia head coach Brady Starkey. "They are a very young and talented team."
Friday night's match was the first five-set challenge for the Golden Bears this season. After falling behind 2-1, the team knew it would take a concerted effort to rally back for the win, but they felt they were prepared.
"We practice five-set matches every day in practice, so we were ready for it," commented Starkey.
The Lopers held Concordia to a .190 hitting average, the second-lowest average of the year behind only a .150 performance in the season-opening loss to Cal State San Bernardino. While the offense came up with a season high 70 kills, being able to defend the UNK offensive onslaught proved to be the difference maker for Concordia. The Lopers were one of the strongest hitting teams that CU has seen this season.
"We focused on doubling up on the middles (blocking) and letting the outside swing. We took away a good area of the court and dug up a lot of balls. Our block got some good touches and slowed the ball down," said Starkey of the defensive game plan.
Senior Whitney Meierotto led the team with 27 digs and made it a double-double with a team high 18 kills. The offense picked things up following a rough first set and gradually made their hitting average rise. They posted 18 kills in a second set win and had a match high .312 hitting average in a fourth set win.
Freshman Ellie Duffy came out in a huge way for her squad, racking up 17 kills and assisting on four blocks. Also finishing in double figures for kills for the Golden Bears were Maria Steinhagen and Sadie Kessler with 15 and 11 kills respectively. Maggie McNamara had a season high 64 assists and finished the night with her 1,000th career dig.
"We have five hitters who can put it up any night," said Meierotto. "We trust each other and push each other in practice, which helps us in games like this," she explained.
Working for the Lopers on Friday evening was a solid blocking effort, something that leading player Jeri Walkowiak was pleased to see.
"Blocking has been one of our weaknesses all season, something that Coach has made us work on every day. It peaked in this match against Concordia's big guns."
Nebraska-Kearney came up with 11 blocks against Concordia, including six from Walkowiak (2s, 4a). Nikki Scott chipped in with four (1s, 3a). Walkowiak and Scott were also the leading attackers on the night with 12 and 17 kills each, respectively. The Lopers hit .181 in the match, swinging for significantly higher figures in set wins and a low of .091 in the final set loss.
The Regional Championship continues to play a broken record with Concordia University and Minnesota Duluth meeting for the fifth consecutive year. The teams have traded wins and berths in the Elite Eight every other season. The Bulldogs will have their sights set on revenge this season, remembering a Concordia upset that came on Bulldog turf in 2007. The Golden Bears have defeated Minnesota Duluth twice this year. The match starts at 7:30 p.m. at the Gangelhoff Center.
Concordia Match Notes: CU is hosting the Central Region Tournament for the fifth time in six seasons ... CU is now 3-0 vs. teams from the RMAC this season ... CU is now 18-4 in the NCAA Tournament and 13-2 in the region tournament ... UNK is the second RMAC team that Concordia has defeated in the NCAA Tournament this year (Regis, quarterfinals) ... today was the first time all season that CU played a five set match ... UNK ended CU's 43 match streak of avoiding a fifth set ... the last time they played five sets was Oct. 30, 2007 against Minnesota Duluth, which UMD won in Duluth ... Concordia has advanced to the region final for the sixth-straight season and for the fifth-straight season they will face Minnesota Duluth in the region final ... Concordia’s win streak now 33 ... CU has won eight-straight postseason matches ... Emily Palkert is 10 kills shy of 1,000 ... Maggie McNamara reached 1,000 career digs with five digs this evening ... Brady Starkey wins career game 199.
Nebraska-Kearney Match Notes: This UNK's 13th NCAA appearance and 10th consecutive ... The Lopers are 23-13 in their 13 appearances ... They have made five Elite Eight appearances (1995-96, 2003-05) with a third-place finish in 2004 and a second-place finish in 2005 as tournament host ... UNK is 8-2 versus NCAA tournament qualifiers this season ... The Lopers are 1-3 in five-set matches this season.
Press Conference Video:
CONCORDIA UNIVERSITY QUOTES
Head Coach Brady Starkey:
Opening Statement: “We’ve played a lot of five set matches in practice. They gave us everything they got. They’re young and talented. We’re excited to come away with a win.”
On atmosphere in the huddle down 2-1: “It was kind of cool. The girls came into the huddle and they were calm. The coaches try to keep the girls calm and the kids do a good job of staying under control.”
On the team’s aggressive serving: "It’s something that we’ve strived for. It’s something that we put a big emphasis on, trying to get teams out of system so they don’t get one-on-ones against us. It’s something we work on every day in practice. When the pressure is on for us they don’t back down.”
On facing Minnesota Duluth: “We’ve played them a few times (joking, laughter in the room). It’s a fun rivalry, some people would think it’s heated but I think its fun. It’s fun to watch.”
Senior outside hitter Whitney Meierotto:
On being one of two seniors: “Being that I’m a senior, I try to take a leadership role. I try to keep everyone together. I’ve been playing all my life. Maggie and I have a connection, but we have five hitters that can go out there and contribute.”
On the team chemistry: “We trust so much in each other. It’s a complete team effort.”
Freshman outside hitter Ellie Duffy:
On producing timely kills: “I was just going up and swinging hard. The defense was playing well, but I just went up and swung.”
On her strong performance as a freshman: “It was a lot of fun. I don’t try to think about being a freshman on the court. I just go out on the court and play.”
NEBRASKA-KEARNEY QUOTES
Head Coach Rick Squires:
Opening Statement: "We made some big plays down the stretch and I'm proud of our girls for their effort. Any problems we had tonight certainly were not effort related."
On his team's style, getting the ball to Walkowiak and Scott: "It was more what we do and how we play than anything they did. Tonight was a little bit of a contrast in styles. We have our offense built around the middle and these two (Walkowiak and Scott) put up big numbers. We run a lot of slides behind the setter and they're not very big on the left side so that played to our style."
How his team reacted after losing in the first round of their conference tournament last week: "We practiced a little better this week. We seemed sharper and a little more focused. We had good practices and preparation this week."
Sophomore middle hitter Jeri Walkowiak:
On her team's blocking tonight: "It's been one of our weaknesses this year. We kind of peaked this game in that area. It was huge for use getting some of those blocks early and getting ahead."
Junior middle hitter Nikki Scott:
On the team's reaction to last week's loss in the RMAC Tournament: "We were all really disappointed last week. Coming out here and playing hard was a big key for us to do well. But our loss helped us realize that anyone can lose on any night. It gave us the confidence to come in here against a team like (Concordia), the #1 team in the nation."
