SEWARD, Neb. – If the fourth-ranked Concordia University Volleyball team was feeling the pressure after dropping the first set on Senior Day Saturday (Oct. 12), it sure didn’t look it. In that moment, senior Becca Gebhardt asked Head Coach Ben Boldt for two ‘low-fives’ to break the tension. The Bulldogs proceeded to take control of the match and earned the victory over visiting Morningside, 20-25, 25-19, 25-20, 25-15, inside Friedrich Arena.
Concordia improved to 16-2 overall (9-1 GPAC) with six of eight home GPAC regular season matches in the books.
“Morningside started off with a really aggressive attack,” Boldt said. “We were talking to our team about mentally preparing for senior day and being able to focus on the match. I don’t have the answer on whether or not we started slow because of senior day stuff or what, but that stuff’s going to happen. We refocused and got back to competing. If we do that at a high level, we’re going to put ourselves in a good mentality to be ready for the next point.”
Returning First Team All-GPAC outside hitter Sydney Marlow and the Mustangs had their sights set on spoiling the party on senior day. Morningside (17-7, 5-5 GPAC) hit .324 (14 kills and two errors) in the opening set that concluded with Claire Wilson’s kill. Wilson and Marlow finished with 13 and 12 kills, respectively, in the bid for an upset. On the other side, Concordia’s potent attack started slow with an .095 first-set hitting percentage.
The Bulldogs barked back in the second set behind a series of energy plays from 6-foot-2 pin hitter Addie Kirkegaard. Kirkegaard rose up for a block that pushed Concordia’s lead to 12-4 in the second set, and the home team was on its way. The Bulldogs unleashed their array of attackers, including four that finished in double figures for kills: Gabi Nordaker (13), Ashley Keck (12), Kirkegaard (10) and Ella Waters (10). A kill from for match point led to senior Macy McClain doing the honors of ringing the victory bell.
In the third set, the All-American Nordaker moved to No. 5 on the program’s all-time kills list (now at 1,320) as she jumped in front of a former All-American in Rachel (Kirchner) Miller (1,315). Nordaker hit .500 on the afternoon and added four blocks. Other statistical leaders included Waters in blocks (five), Becca Gebhardt in digs (17), Lily Psencik in assists (21) and Kate Griess in aces (three). Keck added 14 digs as Morningside finished with a .133 hitting percentage.
Gebhardt was among the seniors honored prior to first serve. The class also includes Kelsi Heard, Cassidy Knust, Macy McClain, Delaney Novy and Ashlyn Wischmeier. It was hard not to feel some type of emotion considering the investment over the past four years.
Said Gebhardt, “It was really fun. It was really fun to have the support from family and friends and knowing what we’ve been through the past four years together with our senior class. It’s really nice to celebrate each other.” Added Wischmeier, “I just focus on taking in the little moments. During the game, I took a look around at everyone who supported us these last four years. That was really sentimental to us. It means a lot.”
Once Concordia shook off the emotions of senior day, it returned to form in time to post yet another GPAC victory. Said Boldt of the final three sets, “The rhythm was a lot better. Part of how we’re built as a team is we get kills. That’s part of our offense. It was kind of tough when we weren’t getting kills. We eventually found it. We were balanced there. We had four people in double digits. Morningside is a good team. They’re physical and they can really stress you with their attack.”
After back-to-back at home, the Bulldogs will be on the road next week. Up next will be Wednesday’s clash in Omaha with College of Saint Mary (13-10, 4-6 GPAC). Concordia will be aiming for a regular season sweep of the Flames, an opponent it beat in four sets in Seward on Sept. 11. In this weekend’s action, CSM split a pair of home matches while falling to No. 1 Northwestern before defeating Dordt.