WINONA, Minn. - The Winona State University volleyball team completed an important NSIC weekend sweep, beating the University of Mary 3-0 in McCown Gymnasium on Saturday, Oct. 7.
Winona State (13-4, 6-3 NSIC) was in control from the outset over UMary (4-13, 0-9 NSIC), as WSU extended their winning streak against the Marauders to 16-0, dating back to Oct. 1, 2010. WSU has earned 3-0 victories in 13 of those matchups. Combined with the WSU 3-0 win over Minot State the evening before, the Warriors go 2-0 on the weekend and have won three of their last four matches.
Key Details: Winona State 3, UMary 0 (25-16, 25-19, 25-9)
Attendance: 309
Sidney Paulson racked up 13 kills and
Gianna Vollrath added 12 as Winona State hit .352 as a team in the victory. WSU had a consistent offensive output across the match, notching 15 kills in each of the three sets while also serving up seven aces on the day. UMary's Ally Gruber was the only Marauder in double-digits for kills (11), and Winona State held the visitors to a .089 hititng percentage as a team.
How It Happened
Winona State enjoyed a strong start to set one, racing out to a 12-5 lead early on.
Sidney Paulson led the WSU offense out of the gate, racking up four kills among the opening eight Warrior points. Paulson and
Taylor Pagel collected kills in the final five points of the stanza for a 25-16 set one victory.
In the second stanza, UMary stiffened their defense and matched Winona State point-for-point for much of the set. WSU trailed by four at one point, down 15-11, but stormed back to tie the set at 16-16 and eventually pull away for a 25-19 Warrior win.
Kenna Kornely was key for WSU, as the freshman from Burlington, Wis. had the first kill and the final kill for the home side.
Jaci Winchell dished out the assists on Kornely's bookend points, and Winchell had 12 helpers overall in the set.
The third and decisive frame saw Winona State use a five-point run to break a 4-4 tie and end the match in three.
Kylie Welch served during the scoring streak and several key digs along the way to allow WSU to close out the match. WSU's
Sophia Armstrong subbed on in the third frame, earning a solo block and the match-winning kill at 25-9.
WINONA STATE STATISTICAL STANDOUTS
Sidney Paulson, 13 kills, .303 hitting %, 3 digs, 1 block assist
Gianna Vollrath, 12 kills, .611 hitting %, 1 solo block
Rylee Vaughn, 16 digs, 3 service aces
Jaci Winchell, 37 assists, 11 digs
UP NEXT
Winona State steps out of conference play to travel to Upper Iowa University on Tuesday, Oct. 10. The Warriors and Peacocks will see first serve at 6 p.m. in Fayette, Iowa.
