DUBUQUE, Iowa - The Wartburg volleyball team opened the 2019 Loras College Invitational Friday evening, defeating No. 11-ranked Gustavus 3-2 prior to falling 3-1 against No. 25-ranked Washington University-St. Louis. 

Wartburg 3, Gustavus 2

After dropping the first set 25-16 to the Gusties, the Knights bounced back in sets two and three and sealed the win in the fifth to take down the 11th-ranked team in the nation.

After taking a 2-1 lead in which Wartburg limited Gustavus to under a .100 attacking percentage in sets two and three, the Gusties bounced back to knot the match at 2-2. Several lead changes in the final set led to an 11-10 lead for GAC, but the Knights closed out the match on a five-point run to seal the victory.

As a team, the Orange and Back hit .154 compared to .110 for GAC. Despite Gustavus holding a 57-40 advantage in kills, Wartburg led 13-4 in blocks. Kylie Bildstein and Jayme Willemssen shared the team-lead with 12 kills each, while Katie Foster led the defense with 21 digs.

WashU 3, Wartburg 1

Wartburg opened match number two on the day winning the first set over WashU, 25-16, in convincing fashion. The Knights hit .444 with 13 kills, compared to a .161 mark for WashU. However, the Bears answered with a strong second set and carried the momentum towards a 3-1 win. 

WashU attacked at a rate of .224 compared to a .198 percentage for the Knights, and led 53-46 in kills. Wartburg led defensively with a 62-57 digs advantage. Zaiah Quirk and Willemssen led Wartburg with 10 kills each, followed by nine from Natalie Clayberg. Foster tallied 16 digs. 

Up Next

Wartburg, now 3-2 overall, concludes competition at the Loras Invite tomorrow with matches at 10 a.m. and noon versus Dominican University and St. Norbert College.