OMAHA, Neb. – On day one of the College of Saint Mary Classic, the third-ranked Concordia University, Nebraska Volleyball team unleashed stretches of dominance while sprinkling in clutch play at the end of sets. Ultimately, the Bulldogs came away from Omaha, Neb., with wins over Lindsey Wilson University (Ky.), 25-10, 30-28, 26-24, and Ottawa University (Kan.), 25-23, 25-17, 17-25, 25-13. Lincoln East High School product Shandy Fa’ali’i produced a team-high 27 kills on Friday (Sept. 4).
Head Coach Ben Boldt’s squad bumped its season record to 8-2. Concordia experienced a lapse in the third set of match two, but it was an overall strong day.
“It’s a long tournament – it’s a two-match day,” Boldt said. “Mentally, I thought we were sharper in the first match than we were in the second match. We can’t take teams for granted, but I’m also never going to take a win for granted. I thought we needed to play cleaner, but we were gritty through the whole match.”
Led by Fa’ali’i, the Bulldogs roared out of the gates in their matinee with Lindsey Wilson (7-6). Concordia hit .500 with 13 kills and just three errors in a dominant first set. However, the Blue Raiders responded and played the Bulldogs to the wire in the second and third stanzas. In exhibiting growth after last week’s nail-biting loss to then third-ranked Indiana Wesleyan University, Concordia scored the final three points of the second set, ending it on a Samantha Kimbell kill. Then in the third set, the Bulldogs rallied from deficits of 20-17 and 23-21. Concordia point Nos. 25 and 26 were delivered by successive kills from Laynee Baker and Fa’ali’i.
Boldt liked what he saw from Fa’ali’i in terms of the variety of shots she sprayed across the court. She hammered out 17 kills on the strength of .367 hitting versus Lindsey Wilson. Joked Boldt, “I want to get a bingo card for her and have a different array of attacks for her to hit. She’s got to fill out the entire bingo card with all those different attacks.”
Spurred by strong serve and pass, the Bulldogs operated efficiently in the first, second and fourth sets in the matchup with Ottawa (2-4), a Kansas Collegiate Athletic Conference member. The hiccup occurred in the third set when Concordia posted nine kills and nine attack errors (.000 hitting percentage). However, the Bulldogs finished the day emphatically, scorching the Braves with a .370 percentage in the final set. Sophomore Makenna Starkey enjoyed a particularly strong match as she amassed 11 kills with a .562 hitting percentage.
A sophomore from Omaha, Baker is elevating her game. Over Friday’s seven sets, she recorded 18 kills (.452) and seven blocks from the front row. Fa’ali’i and Baker were joined in double figures in kills on the day by teammates in Starkey (15), Kimbell (14) and Bella Hedke (12). The Wayne State College transfer Hedke also added eight blocks.
Concordia enjoyed significant attacking advantages over its two Friday opponents as it outhit them, .249 to .131, and out-killed them, 94-71. Other team leaders on the day outside of Fa’ali’i in kills and Hedke in blocks were Myla Emery in assists (42) and Kyla Griess in aces (five). Emery and Fa’ali’i also shared a team high with 17 digs apiece. The Bulldogs tallied 14 aces on the day.
Said Boldt of regrouping after the third set with Ottawa, “I think we got slow a little bit. We refocused for the fourth game, and that’s really all you can do. You’re not always going to be perfect. We’re going to get everybody’s best shot. That’s something we have to own as a group.”
The Bulldogs will wrap up their weekend at the College of Saint Mary Labor Day Classic with a single match on Saturday. First serve is set for 5 p.m. CT between Concordia and University of Saint Francis (Ind.) inside the Lied Fitness Center Fieldhouse in Omaha. The match will be broadcast live by 104.9 Max Country.