HOUSTON, Texas. – On the final day of the First Responders Tournament, the University of Minnesota Morris volleyball team defeated Howard Payne University 3-1 (18-25, 25-22, 25-15, 25-19) Saturday afternoon in Houston, Texas.
 
The Cougars improve to 4-5 with the win.
 
Clara Holden continued her trend of starting matches with an ace, scoring on the first serve of the game. HPU responded with four straight points to take an early lead. Ella Johnson recorded the first kill for UMM at 6-4, and an attack error by the Lady Jackets cut the lead to one. The Cougars traded points with HPU, but a four-point rally gave the Lady Jackets their largest lead of the set at five. UMM pulled within two after back-to-back kills from Johnson and an ace from Mary Cate Ziembiec. However, Howard Payne quickly regained the momentum and maintained the five-point lead, taking set one 25-18.
 
Ziembiec opened set two with a kill assisted by Holden. A kill from Bella Nelson sparked a six-point run for UMM, which included two aces from Lexi Coon and additional kills from Johnson and Nelson. Whenever HPU threatened to close the gap, the Cougars responded. A four-point run highlighted by kills from Oliviah Lorber and Ziembiec pushed the score to 12-7. Tori Scheler's first kill of the match extended the lead to six. HPU rallied to tie the set at 17-17, but kills from Nelson and Holden helped UMM retake control. The Cougars held on to claim set two, 25-22.
 
Holden began the third set on serve and notched another ace on her second attempt. Ziembiec and Scheler helped UMM build an early lead with kills, and Holden sparked another rally with her second kill, followed by an ace from Nelson. The Cougars went up by four. Though HPU began to chip away, UMM maintained its advantage. Kills from Anna Molstad and Ziembiec made it 11-8, and another three-point run—including a Nelson kill, a Scheler kill, and a Ziembiec ace—put the Cougars up by five. Lorber initiated a dominant seven-point rally that pushed the lead to 10, with Nelson totaling four service aces during the stretch. Minnesota Morris took set three convincingly, 25-15.
 
The first six points of the fourth set came off errors, evening the score at 3-3. Nelson recorded the first kill of the set for either team. The Lady Jackets briefly took the lead at 10-7 after a kill, but the Cougars responded with two kills from Scheler and an ace from Ziembiec to go back in front. UMM's lead extended to five following a 5-1 rally, highlighted by kills from Nelson and Johnson. A kill set up by Allison Dornseif made it 20-15, and Lexi Coon sealed the match with a kill for a 25-19 set win.
 
Johnson and Ziembiec led the UMM attack, reaching double-digit kills with 12 and 10, respectively. Scheler followed with eight. Holden led the team with 21 assists, while Dornseif contributed 13.
The Cougars served 13 aces in the match, with Nelson leading the way with five and Ziembiec adding four.
 
Defensively, three Cougars recorded double-digit digs: Ziembiec led with 16, Holden added 14, and Coon tallied 10. At the net, Minnesota Morris totaled five blocks. Lorber and Ziembiec each had three (one solo and two assists apiece).
 
The Cougars return to action next weekend at the St. Olaf-Carleton Tournament, beginning with a matchup against Wartburg College on Friday at 5 p.m.