ST. JOSEPH, Minn. – The University of Minnesota Morris Volleyball team dropped its first match 3-1 (25-22, 16-25, 23-25, 24-26) to (RV) Nebraska Wesleyan University then defeated Luther College 3-0 (25-14, 25-12, 25- 21) Saturday in the final day of the College of St. Benedict Tournament in St. Joseph, Minn.
 
After the pair of matches, the Cougar move to 1-2 on the season.
 
To start the match against the Prairie Wolves, both teams traded early points. Nebraska Wesleyan (NWU) quickly built an early lead, going up 9-5. The Cougars responded with the next three points, thanks to kills from Mary Cate Ziembiec and Anna Molstad. NWU soon had its largest advantage at 17-10. Minnesota Morris closed the gap quickly, going on a 6-1 rally with Bella Nelson, Ella Johnson, and Molstad each tallying a kill. A block from Tori Scheler knotted the set up at 19-all, and a kill from Nelson gave UMM the lead at 22-21. Ziembiec would seal the first set after Lexi Coon set her up, allowing the Cougars to take set one 25-22.
 
Set two began with Minnesota Morris holding a 3-1 advantage, thanks to kills by Ziembiec and Nelson and a service ace from Ziembiec. However, the lead didn't last long as the Prairie Wolves went on a five-point run. A string of four points, capped off by a Scheler kill, had UMM within two. But NWU ended the set on a nine-to-two rally, taking set two 25-16.
 
Nebraska Wesleyan scored the first four points of set three, but the Cougars slowly began to make up ground. After trailing 12-7, Minnesota Morris leveled the score at 13 after Nelson connected on an attack. Allison Dornseif gave the Cougars their first lead of the set with an ace. UMM would hold a two-point advantage late in the set, but a three-point rally by NWU flipped the lead to 22-21. A pair of NWU attack error had the Cougars two points away from taking the set, but the Prairie Wolves would score the next three-points unanswered to win the set 25-23.
 
A block by Braxtyn Meyer and Nelson started the fourth set, followed by two more Cougar points. Johnson recorded a kill and combined on a block with Scheler to help UMM pull to an early 8-4 lead. Nebraska Wesleyan tied the set at 10, and the next 12 points were traded between the teams, keeping the score tied at 16. Minnesota Morris built up a three-point advantage with kills from Johnson and Nelson. The Cougars reached set point at 24-22 but were unable to close it out as NWU scored four unanswered points, taking the set 26-24 and the match.

Nelson and Johnson led the attack with 11 and 10 kills, respectively. Molstad rounded out the top three with nine kills. The Cougars tallied seven aces, with Holden and Meyer each contributing a team-high two. Dornseif and Holden set up the Minnesota Morris attack, totaling 17 and 15 assists, respectively.
 
Coon, for the second match in a row, had a team-leading 19 digs. Holden, Johnson, and Dornseif all reached double figures in digs. Scheler paced the Cougars with four blocks—two solo and two assisted—while Meyer and Nelson followed with three assisted blocks each.
 
Payton Merth recorded the first point for the Cougars against Luther College with a kill assisted by Holden. A kill followed by an ace from Meyer ignited an eight-point rally for Minnesota Morris. After back-to-back kills from Scheler, the Cougars were up 11-5. They continued their momentum by scoring the next five points. Late in the opening set, Holden delivered three straight points off her serve, increasing the lead to 21-8. An ace from Dornseif closed out set one, giving UMM a 25-14 win.
 
After conceding the first point of set two, Merth took over, accounting for the next four points with a kill and three service aces. More aces and kills pushed the Cougar lead to 11-3. While UMM and Luther traded points throughout the middle of the set, Minnesota Morris never surrendered control. The Cougars stretched their lead to 20-10, fueled by continued service dominance. They scored the final three points—starting with a kill from Molstad and ending with a kill from Johnson—to take set two 25-12. UMM racked up eight service aces in the second set alone.
 
The final set was the most competitive, with neither team able to gain separation early. The score was tied at 17, with the largest lead before that being just two points. Kills by Oliviah Lorber and Johnson gave UMM a two-point edge. Down the stretch, Molstad added two more kills, and a service ace from Coon gave the Cougars their largest lead of the set at 24-19. Luther pulled within three, but Molstad closed the match with her seventh kill, sealing a 25-21 win and a straight sets sweep for Minnesota Morris.
 
Molstad and Johnson led the Cougar offense with seven kills each, followed by Nelson and Scheler with five apiece. Holden directed the attack with 14 assists, while Dornseif added seven. The Cougars were especially dominant at the service line, totaling 18 aces, led by Meyer with five.
 
Defensively, Merth paced UMM with 13 digs, followed by Coon with 11. The Cougars recorded four total blocks, with Johnson and Scheler each contributing two.
 
Johanna Bartkey, Rachel Bopp, Ashley Rogers and Lorber all made their Cougar debut in the contest.
 
Next week, the Cougars travel to Minneapolis, Minn., for the Augsburg Tournament. Minnesota Morris will play two matches on Sept. 5, starting with Gustavus Adolphus College at 2:30 p.m., followed by Augsburg University at 7:30 p.m.