SIOUX CITY, Iowa – There wasn’t a single moment that the 10th-ranked Concordia University Volleyball team could really feel comfortable. In pool play action at the NAIA National Championship, the Bulldogs went wire-to-wire in all five sets before outlasting Lindsey Wilson College (Ky.), 23-25, 26-24, 28-26, 25-27, 15-10, inside the Tyson Events Center in Sioux City, Iowa, on Tuesday (April 27). There were a combined 466 attacks on a night when every point had to be earned.
Head Coach Ben Boldt’s squad has a chance to advance to the NAIA national quarterfinals if it can win a second pool play match on Wednesday. Concordia (17-4) showed poise in stressful situations on Tuesday. The Bulldogs could have easily gone down 2-0 after struggling to begin the second set.
“I saw a lot of fight,” Boldt said. “I called two early timeouts in that set – we were just out of sync. Volleyball works that way sometimes and all it takes is someone making a big play. I saw Shelby Stark, a freshman, take a big swing. We talk about taking fearless swings, and that’s contagious. There was a lot of fight, a lot of adjustments that happened tonight. It was good to see our team live in that world of competition.”
It was an active night for the back rows of both sides. Concordia’s Marissa Hoerman dug 11 balls in the first set and finished with a match high 35 digs. In the deciding fifth set, the Bulldogs managed to limit the Blue Raiders (22-4) to a grand total of four kills. In continuing her big night, Gabi Nordaker floored five kills of her own (including kills for four of the first seven Concordia points of the set) in the fifth. A dink of a kill by Camryn Opfer provided match point.
While playing the role of the favorite, the Bulldogs got all they could handle in a team that showed a much different look than what they are used to seeing in the GPAC. Strategic changes were made on the fly to help contain a Lindsey Wilson squad quarterbacked by star setter Camryn Rich.
Said Boldt, “Just before we started the (fifth) set we made a couple of adjustments with where our diggers were. We wanted to make sure our blockers knew where their attackers were coming from. They play a different style of offense than we’re used to seeing in the GPAC. That’s what you’re going to get at national tournaments. The resiliency that our team and the communication and attitude we had the whole time was something I was really happy with.”
On the flip side, Concordia threw out its arsenal of hitters that included right side Shelby Stark (11 kills), who is taking on an increased role at the national tournament. Nordaker led the way with 25 kills and six blocks. Another three Bulldogs reached double figures in kills: Kara Stark (15), Opfer (14) and Kalee Wiltfong (12). Three teammates also joined Hoerman with at least 20 digs: Opfer (29), Tristin Mason (23) and Tara Callahan (20). Callahan racked up 71 assists as Concordia slightly outhit Lindsey Wilson, .172 to .167.
An 8-0 deficit to begin the second set made things appear ominous, but the Bulldogs did not waver. Said Nordaker, “We really just stayed in the moment. Our whole mantra is to stay fearless going after very swing, no matter what – hitting off those high hands and going after every ball. Hustle plays were really on tonight.”
The Blue Raiders have been eliminated from the tournament after also having lost in straight sets to No. 7 Marian University (Ind.) earlier in the day. Lindsey Wilson got a match high 16 kills from Madison Bidwell.
Pool G now comes down to Concordia and Marian. The two top-10 ranked teams will go head-to-head on Wednesday with first serve set for 3:30 p.m. CT. The Knights hit a scorching .375 in their victory over the Blue Raiders.