SAU gets two more wins to move to 5-2
| Final | 1 | 2 | 3 | 4 | T | |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
|
St. Ambrose (5-2) | 24 | 25 | 25 | 25 | 3 |
|
Maranatha Baptist (16-2) | 26 | 7 | 19 | 15 | 1 |
| Final | 1 | 2 | 3 | 4 | 5 | T | |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
|
St. Ambrose (4-2) | 25 | 25 | 17 | 23 | 15 | 3 |
|
Lincoln (Ill.) (5-4) | 17 | 17 | 25 | 25 | 11 | 2 |
Off to their best start in years, the Bees picked up two more wins Saturday to move to 5-2 on the season.
St. Ambrose needed five sets to defeat Lincoln and then turned around and knocked off Maranatha Baptist Bible College in four in the team's final two regular-season matches of the fall. The 5-2 record is the program's best start since the 2013 team started the season 6-1.
SAU nearly let a two-set lead slip away in an eventual 25-17, 25-17, 17-25, 23-25, 15-11 win over Lincoln.
After watching the Lynx win both the third and fourth sets, the Bees recovered to take an 11-7 lead in the fifth on a Rachael Dion kill. But Lincoln (5-4) again came back, winning four straight points to pull even at 11-11. After a timeout, it was SAU's time to rally. A Lincoln hitting error sparked the Bees. That was followed by a Meredith Siebers ace. A Jill Kavalauskas kill earned a match point and Siebers followed with another ace to close out the four-point run and the victory.
Along with four aces, Siebers tied for the team lead with 10 kills. Jessica Hemm also collected 10 kills. Kavalauskas finished with nine, Dion and Riley Epperson each put down seven, and London Williams was credited with five.
Hannah Sondag and Amber Tomlin led the way with 19 assists apiece, while Maicee Pierce recorded 11 assists.
Pierce (15), Sondag (13), Tomlin (11) and Alexis Hayes (10) all reached double digits in digs.
Kavalauskas and Dion then helped St. Ambrose get over a slow start in a 24-26, 25-7, 25-19, 25-15 win over Maranatha Baptist. Each player registered 15 kills, with Dion having just one hitting error in 21 chances.
Siebers finished with nine kills, Hemm had seven and Epperson added six.
Sondag (29) and Tomlin (21) collected 50 of the Bees' 58 assists. Pierce had a team-best 14 digs while Tomlin and Aleah Wight each picked up nine.
St. Ambrose will scrimmage Southeastern CC next Saturday before resuming the regular season in late January.