Duluth, Minn. - The annual meeting between Concordia-St. Paul and the University of Minnesota Duluth has commanded a lot of attention in recent years, but a Bulldog victory over their archrival in front of their home fans has not been in the cards. That all changed Friday night when sixth-ranked UMD outpaced the five time defending NCAA II champion Golden Bears 3-1 (25-20, 21-25, 25-22, 25-17) in front of 903 spectators at Romano Gymnasium.
"I'm pleased with the win. I was very happy with the way we played tonight," Bulldog head coach Jim Boos said. "We were very aggresive. We attacked. We played with a lot of confidence coming off a tough road loss."
Fans who have come to expect a heavyweight bout between the two perennial powerhouses were not let down in a contentious opening frame. The two teams -- which shared the Northern Sun Intercollegiate Conference crown in 2011 -- traded blows back and forth until the Bulldogs broke away from tie score midway through the set. With the score tied at 9-9, a kill by freshman Mariah Scharf gave UMD the lead and sent the serve to the Bulldogs. UMD then rolled to a 9-1 run, which included six straight points off the serve of sophomore outside hitter Katie Ledwell. Concordia-St. Paul attempted to mount a late rally, but a Scharf swing from the right side found the floor and put the Bulldogs ahead 1-0.
The Golden Bears responded, clubbing 14 kills on an attack percentage of .333 (after hitting .242 in the first game) en route to winning the second set. UMD held with Concordia throughout the entire frame, and had a golden opportunity to take a commanding lead into the intermission with the set knotted at 21-21. Feeling the desperation of their situation, the Golden Bears put together a 4-0 run, sending the teams to the locker room all square.
Following the break, UMD cleaned up a few things offensively, allowing the Bulldogs to claim the final two sets. UMD stormed out to a 15-8 lead in the third, but found itself in a 19-19 deadlock after a couple miniature momentum swings in favor of the Golden Bears. The Bulldogs rallied in the clutch, breaking from a 21-21 tie and ultimately claiming the set on a finesse punch shot to the back-corner by freshman middle blocker Monica Turner, who finished with 10 kills. The fourth set looked to be another heated battle, with the teams pushing one another to a 7-7 score. UMD pulled away from there with a 7-2 run, which allowed the Bulldogs to play the rest of the match with a comfortable lead. Junior outside hitter Kate Lange sealed the victory with her match-high 25th kill, pounding a ball past Concordia setter Amanda Konetchy.
UMD (14-1 overall and 5-1 in the NSIC) racked up 66 combined kills on the legs of a .291 hitting percentage. Concordia (10-3; 4-2) hit .264 for the evening with 49 kills and six blocks.
Freshman setter Ashley Hinsch passed put 53 assists and added six digs. Sophomore right side hitter Maddy Siroin (11 kills) and Scharf (10 kills) joined Lange and Turner with double digit performances in the kill department. The Bulldogs collected a season-high eight service aces on the evening.
The Bulldogs return to Romano Saturday afternoon to wrap up the weekend against another Top 10 opponent. UMD will take on No. 10 Minnesota State University-Mankato at 4:00 p.m.