WINONA, Minn. — The Macalester College and Saint Mary's University volleyball teams both headed into Saturday's Minnesota Intercollegiate Athletic Conference showdown with the same goal in mind — close out the regular season on a high note.
Fortunately for Macalester head coach
Mary Johnston, it would be the Scots who left the Saint Mary's Gym singing the winning tune.
And while the season-ending 3-0 victory over the Cardinals was the frosting on the Scots' cake, it was
Adisa Preston (Eden Prairie, Minn./Eden Prairie),
Hannah Morrow (Raleigh, N.C./Millbrook), and
Torrance Williams (Houston, Texas/Yes Prep Northbrook) who put the cherry on top. Preston became the seventh Scot to reach 1,000 career kills with her 10-kill effort, while Morrow eclipsed the 1,000 career-assist mark with 11 helpers against SMU. Williams reached her own milestone, tallying her 1,500th dig of her career.
After surrendering six of the first nine points in the opening set, and staring at a 6-3 deficit, the Scots rattled off eight unanswered points to take an 11-6 lead —a lead they would not relinquish. Macalester led 14-7, before Saint Mary's used a 4-0 run to cut the advantage to three, 14-11.
That, however, would be as close as the Cardinals would get, as Macalester score 11 of the set's final 16 points — including back-to-back set-ending kills by Preston to secure the 25-16 victory.
Macalester was in complete control in the second set, scoring the first three points — and never looking back. The Scots led 20-11 on a Saint Mary's attack error, held 10-point leads of 22-12 and 24-14, before posting their largest lead of the set on a
Sydney Stratton (North Liberty, Iowa/Liberty) kill to complete the 25-14 victory.
Neither team could wrestle away the momentum early in the third set, a set that included eight ties through the opening 22 points. That eighth tie — knotting the set at 11-11 — proved to be an historical one, as Preston picked up her eighth kill of the night to reach the 1,000-kill plateau.
Preston's kill also proved to be a wake-up call for the Scots' offense, as Macalester rattled off seven of the next eight points to put the Scots in complete control, 19-12. But Saint Mary's refused to throw in the towel, holding off seven set points to pull even, 24-24.
Macalester, however, had just enough left in the tank, getting a kill from
Grace Galer (Hanover Park, Ill./Schaumburg) and an SMU setting error to complete the 26-24 sweep-clinching third set victory.
Preston finished with a team-high 10 kills, while
Ella Cohen-Richie (Chicago, Ill./University of Chicago Laboratory Schools) chipped in eight kills and hit a team-best .500.
Nicole Norton (Brussels, Wis./Southern Door) and Morrow each hit double figures in assists, with Norton dishing out 16 helpers, five more than Morrow, while Williams chipped in a team-leading 16 digs.
With the win, Macalester closed out the season with a 13-15 overall record, including a 5-6 mark in conference play.
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