Energy And Determination Help Seal Five-Set Win

MOORHEAD, Minn. (10/03/14)—Senior Kynndyl Ross' 10th kill of the night was the biggest of the season as she hammered down a pass from Mandy Mercil to give Concordia a much-needed 3-2 (25-22, 26-24, 17-25, 20-25, 15-13) win over Carleton. The Cobbers took a 2-0 lead but then had to hold on in the fifth set to earn their third straight home win of the season.

The victory pushes Concordia's overall season record above the .500 mark for the first time all season. The Cobbers are now 9-8 in all matches and 2-2 in the MIAC. Carleton continues to look for its first MIAC victory of the year. The Knights are now 0-4 in league play and 10-6 overall.

The match looked like it would be another three-set special for the Cobbers as they won the final three points in the opening set to grab a 25-22 win and then claimed the last two points in the second set to earn a 26-24 victory.

Kynndyl Ross'Match-Winning Point

When asked about the team's success in the first two sets, junior outside hitter Olivia Wangensteen responded, "I think we were switching up our sets. Everyone was getting kills and Mandy (Mercil) and Jena (Klaphake) (Concordia setters) were doing a great job."  

The match swung in Carleton's favor at the end of the third set. The Knights pulled away from the Cobbers after hanging on to a slim 15-14 lead. Carleton would win 10 of the final 13 points to record the 25-17 win.

The fourth set held the same pattern as the first three with the set winner being able to pull away at the finish line. Carleton came through with six of the final eight points after CC cut the deficit to a single point at 19-18.         

The final set was all about energy and determination.

"We talked about just keeping our energy up and go for the ball," answered Wangensteen when asked what was said in the team huddle prior to the fifth set.

Concordia vs. Carleton Third Set Net Cam

Concordia took a big three-point lead at 12-9 in the fifth set but then watched as the Knights win the next two points to get to within one at 12-11. The Cobbers then turned up the energy at just the right time. CC won the next two points to climb to a 14-11 lead. After Carleton cut the lead back to one at 14-13, Cobber head coach Tim Mosser called timeout to set up a play for Ross. The All-Conference front line player responded with a thundering kill from the right side to win the match.

Concordia had three players with double-digit kill totals. Anna Skow-Anderson led the way with a career-high 18 kills. Wangensteen added a season-high 16 winners while Ross finished with 10 kills. Wangensteen also had 15 digs to record her second double-double of the year.

Mercil and Klaphake combined for 57 assists in the match. Klaphake had 29 which was one more than the total for Mercil.

Alyssa Schmidt finished with 31 digs while Kathleen Lippert had five blocks for the second straight match.

Concordia will have little time to enjoy the five-set win. The Cobbers will host St. Mary's on Saturday, Oct. 4 at 1:30 in the second game of their annual home-and-home conference doubleheader.


Olivia Wangensteen Post Match Interview

Concordia vs. Carleton Highlights