After best start since 1984, the Gusties hope to continue their strong play
Fall is just around the corner, and that means another volleyball season is already under way. The Gusties, already in the thick of their season, own an 11-1 record as of Wednesday.
The team finished last season with an 18-8 overall and disappointing 6-5 MIAC record, not making the cut for the MIAC playoffs. The team lost their two Senior Co-Captains from last year to graduation, [Andrea Kron and Jenny Thelemann.] Kron and Theleman finished their volleyball careers at Gustavus 3rd and 6th on the all time kills list.
Six first-year players are making contributions to this year’s squad. Among them, Olivia Warren, an outside hitter from Goodhue, MN, and Angela Ahrendt, a middle hitter from Shoreview, MN, have both seen considerable playing time. Warren and Ahrendt have recorded an impressive 106 kills and 97 kills respectively. Also new to the squad are First-Year players Courtney Kelzer (Mayer, MN), Katie Ness (Excelsior, MN), Melissa Noening (Norwood Young America, MN) and Abby Roff (Plymouth, MN). Coach Kari Eckheart believes the new players are making a smooth transition to the college game, said, “The first-year players seem to be adjusting well and have been pushing each other along with [returning players] in practices and matches.”
The Gusties are also returning 10 letter winners from last year, including this year’s Senior Co-Captains Bridget Burtzel, Britta Bolm, Emily Klein and Andrea Smilanich. According to Captain Klein, “Our goals are to make sure that the younger girls are having fun playing the sport we all love to play, leading by example on and off the court and being a support system for them whenever they need it.” Also returning is Junior standout Meghan Gehring, as well as Sophomores Nicki Ainsworth and Janey Helland, who are all looking to have a breakout year.
The Gusties are looking to take a strong standing this year, making their best start since 1984-going 8-0 in their first eight matches before losing a match. This past Saturday, the Gusties hosted a triangular with the University of North Dakota and Carleton College. Gustavus saw the first action of the triangular against UND, who was also undefeated. The Gusties opened the match with a solid first set, rallying from a 19-19 tie to clinch the set, forcing several UND errors. The second set was nearly a reversal of roles, with the Gusties making several errors, allowing the Fighting Sioux to get free balls and easy points. In the third and fourth sets, UND made a flurry of kills and finished the match 3-1 (25-20, 16-25, 14-25, 16-25), handing the Gusties their first loss of the season. Meghan Gehring led the Gusties with 10 kills and Bridget Burtzel had 28 assists.
The Gusties took on Carleton College later in the afternoon. Warren and Ahrendt took control of the first set, getting the Gusties off with a 15-10 start. Gustavus took advantage of several Carleton hitting errors, stretching the lead to 22-14 before Ahrendt finished the set with two consecutive kills. The second set was very evenly played, allowing the score to be tied seven times throughout. Carleton fought back from a 22-19 deficit to tie the score at 23-23. Gustavus fought off both Carleton set points and finally battled back to win the set 30-28. The third set was also very close, with both teams working to a 20-20 tie late in the set. Gustavus managed a 24-20 lead before Carleton came with 2 at 24-22. Warren killed any hopes of a comeback, literally, ending the set at 25-22. With the win, Gustavus improved their season record to 10-1.
This past Wednesday, the Gusties opened their conference schedule with a victory over Augsburg in St. Peter. Gustavus held an advantage in blocks-12.0 to a meager 5.5 by Augsburg-and dropped only the matches second set. Gustavus will travel to Northwestern to partticipate in a quadrangular Saturday, September 20 before the heart of the MIAC season takes place.
Photo Courtesy Of: Sports Information