CRETE, Neb. – Four days after a miraculous comeback victory over Morningside, the Concordia University volleyball team experienced the other side of a five-set battle. Host and 17th-ranked Doane came alive in the third, fourth and fifth sets and rallied for a 24-26, 27-29, 25-20, 25-22, 15-7, win inside the Haddix Center in Crete, Neb.
The Bulldogs had hoped to win at Doane for the third-straight time. Instead, fifth-year head coach Scott Mattera’s squad missed out on another opportunity to knock off a ranked opponent. Concordia fell to 10-8 overall and 2-2 in conference play.
“We got what we earned tonight,” Mattera said. “We’ve got some things we need to take care of, and that’s what we’re going to do.”
The Tigers (13-4, 3-2 GPAC) were like a different team after the first two sets. Concordia didn’t have an answer for the likes of Kaitlin Bradley (25 kills) and Maci Coffey (16 kills). Doane played power ball in flooring 19 kills in third set, 17 in the fourth and nine in the fifth. Bradley and company hit .382 or better in each of the final three sets.
The Tigers shrugged it off after dropping two intense battles in the first and second sets. Senior Paige Getz, who continues to see her star rise, ended up with a team high 15 kills. She was especially hot early on. She put away the tension-filled second set with a kill that seemingly gave Concordia all the momentum.
But not much went right the rest of the way, save for Tiegen Skains’ bombs on the right side. Skains kept the Bulldogs in it in the third and fourth sets. She struck for 13 kills while hitting .417 on the night.
Doane just had more firepower. It hit .318 for the match compared to a .163 clip for Concordia.
Senior Alayna Kavanaugh, named GPAC setter of the week, dished out 39 assists. Jocelyn Garcia collected 17 digs. Raymi Marquardt added 13. The Bulldogs out-blocked the Tigers, 9-6. Taylor Workman was part of four blocks.
The Bulldogs will get ready for another nationally-ranked opponent with No. 9 Dordt (10-3, 3-1 GPAC) coming into town on Saturday. First serve is set for 3 p.m. CT from Walz Arena.