NORTHFIELD, Minn. – The Macalester College volleyball team played two matches at the Carleton/St. Olaf Invitational against two teams in the national rankings and came away with a victory over the University of Chicago on Saturday at Carleton's West Gymnasium. The Scots, who also battled No. 19 Dubuque before falling in four sets, are now 3-9 heading into MIAC play next week.

Against UChicago (4-7), which received votes in this week's AVCA Top 25 Poll, Macalester won the first set, 25-21 on the strength of a .270 team hitting percentage and four kills from senior right side Avery Rahe (Olathe, Kan./Olathe West). The Scots almost took Set 2, battling back from 11-5 and 16-11 deficits to tie the score at 23-23. But the Maroons won the last two points to take the set, 25-23. Rahe again had four kills in the set. In the third set, Macalester had 12 kills, including five from sophomore outside hitter Adonia Anene (North Hollywood, Calif./The Buckley School), en route to a 25-19 victory and a 2-1 lead in the match. The Scots closed out the win by holding UChicago to a .024 hitting percentage and getting three blocks from junior middle blocker Sydney Stratton (North Liberty, Iowa/Liberty) and four kills from Anene in a 25-18 triumph.

Anene finished with 15 kills to go with 12 digs and four service aces, while Rahe had 14 kills. Junior setter Hannah Morrow (Raleigh, N.C./Millbrook) registered 22 assists and a team-best 16 digs, with sophomore setter Camilia Jones (Orlando, Fla.) adding 15 assists. Defensively, sophomore libero Elizabeth Joo (San Jose, Calif./Valley Christian) contributed 14 digs, while first year middle blocker Danielle Oji (Katy, Texas/Obra D. Tompkins) notched five blocks and Stratton and Anene had four blocks apiece.

In the second match of the day, Macalester went toe to toe with 19th-ranked Dubuque, eventually falling, 25-16, 22-25, 25-20, 25-18. The Scots tallied 15 kills in the second set compared to 10 for the Spartans, with Anene registering five kills and sophomores Ella Cohen-Richie (Chicago, Ill./U. of Chicago Laboratory Schools) and Hannah Eisenman (Cary, N.C./Green Level) adding four kills apiece in the 25-22 win. For the match, Anene led Macalester with 13 kills to go with 14 digs, and Cohen-Richie had 11 kills. Eisenman and junior outside hitter MiLani Terrell (Cypress, Texas/Tomball Memorial) each put away eight kills, and Stratton tallied seven kills and two blocks. Jones notched 19 assists and Morrow added 16 assists and 15 digs, with Joo leading the Scots with 20 digs. Oji continued her strong play at the net with four blocks. Anene was named to the 12-player All-Tournament Team after completion of the Carleton/St. Olaf Invitational.

Macalester begins MIAC play on Thursday, Sept. 25 with a match at Hamline. The MIAC contest starts at 7:00 p.m. in St. Paul.