MORRIS, Minn. – The No. 2 seed UMN Morris volleyball team (16-11) defeated the No. 3 seed St. Scholastica Saints (16-9) in four sets (19-25, 25-20, 25-14, 25-15) Wednesday night to advance to the 2019 Upper Midwest Athletic Conference (UMAC) Tournament Championship match. The Cougars travel to St. Paul, Minnesota, on Saturday, Nov. 9, to take on No. 1 seed Northwestern at 7 p.m.

HOW IT HAPPENED

• The Cougars held a 14-10 lead over the Saints in the opening set, but St. Scholastica would prevail, 25-19, to take the first set over the home team.

• Trailing 12-7 in the second set, Minnesota Morris scored six-straight points to take a 13-12 lead over the Saints. The two teams continued to battle down the stretch of the second set with the Cougars holding off the Saints, 25-20, to pick up the win.

• The Cougars found their stride early in the third set with a 10-2 run to open things up. St. Scholastica brought the deficit to 13-8, but a 12-6 run for Minnesota Morris closed out the third set at 25-14.

• Similar to the third set, UMN Morris jumped out to an early lead over the Saints. After the Cougars took a 12-4 lead over the Saints, UMN Morris closed out the match with a 25-15 victory over St. Scholastica.

NOTABLES

• Layne Herrmann tallied a game-high 44 assists.

• Tori Everson finished the evening with 12 kills, 12 digs, and three aces.

• Four Cougars tallied at least 10 kills on the evening (Everson – 12, Brenna Tinjum – 12, Morgan Miller – 12, Mia Frick – 10).

• Alyssa Ukestad also led the Cougars with 12 digs.

• The Cougars advanced to their seventh-straight UMAC Tournament title match.

UP NEXT
The Cougars travel to St. Paul, Minnesota, on Saturday, Nov. 9, to take on No. 1 seed Northwestern at 7 p.m. for the 2019 UMAC Tournament title.