Staff Writer- Katie Thomas
This past weekend, the Gustavus women’s Volleyball Team traveled to UW-Stevens Point for the Pointer Invitational, and it was an intense few days with every match having intense sets. Over three matches, every player showed determination, skill, stamina, and sportsmanship. The hard work paid off by finishing the weekend with two wins and one loss. The team played well together against hard teams and still stayed calm and collected. The first match happened on Friday, Oct. 3rd and the Gusties played Washington University. The following day, Saturday Oct. 4th, the Gusties faced two teams. The first team was Millikin and the second was UW-Stevens Point.
Gustavus faced off in the first match against Washington University who is ranked tenth in the country. Even though they were facing a tough opponent, the Gusties still shined. The match was close and went to all five sets. This proves both teams were giving it their all and made for an exciting match to watch. Gustavus pulled off a 3-2 win in an intense five-set match. The match was a back-and-forth battle from the start. Gustavus lost the first set 26-24 but bounced back to win the second and third sets, 25-19 and 25-22. Washington played hard to take the fourth set 25-22, sending the match into a fifth set. In the final set, Gustavus jumped out to an early lead and held on to win 15-13, thanks to a crucial kill by senior Sydney Timm. Senior libero Maren Sundberg had a standout night, reaching over 2,000 career digs and being only the third player in Gustavus history to do so. She also contributed twenty digs in the match. Sophomore Logan Brent led the team offensively with eighteen kills, while senior Leah Berg and Timm added strong hitting performances. The first match set the Gusties up for success and was a fun match to watch. The team got some rest for the next two matches on Saturday.
The second match of the weekend was on Saturday against Millikin University, and it was another close match that went to five sets. Both teams fought hard and each team took one set each. The Gusties kicked off the day with a hard-fought 3-2 win over Millikin University. The third set was especially intense, with neither team leading by more than two points. Down 17-15, Gustavus went on a four-point run to take a brief lead, but Millikin fought back to 24-23. The Gusties held their nerve, winning the set 27-25 to go up 2-1. Millikin took the fourth set 25-22, pushing the match to a fifth set where Gustavus took the lead early. They took a 7-1 lead and closed the set 15-6. Timm led the team with eighteen kills, first-year Ella Olson was strong on serve with six aces, and first-year Greta Tompkins contributed six blocks. Another hard fought match by the Gusties where they proved team as well as individual capabilities.
The last match of the tournament was against the host team, UW-Stevens Point. Gustavus started out strong, winning the first two sets and looking like they were going to take the match. But Stevens Point didn’t give up and they fought back hard. Stevens Point’s energy helped them gain momentum and home crowd support helped contribute to the rally back. This allowed them to win the next two sets by small margins to even the match. Gustavus and Stevens Point were tied, both having two sets, but in the final set Stevens Point pulled ahead and won 15-9. Despite the loss, all players fought hard and showed great skill and determination. It was a well fought match where both teams proved themselves.
Even though they lost the last match, Gustavus had a successful weekend overall. They finished with two wins and one loss against some strong teams. With many matches going into long sets, the Gusties showed great stamina. They never gave up and fought through long rallies. Winning against a top ten team like Washington University in St. Louis is a great accomplishment for the women’s volleyball team. It proves that Gustavus can compete with the best and gives the team confidence moving forward. After this tournament, the Gusties improved their season record to 16-4. They have shown they can win tight matches and come back from tough situations. “It was a really good fight, all three matches . So excited for conference play,” said Timm. The Gusties will compete next on Oct. 10th against St. Olaf.