LINCOLN, Neb. -- The Wartburg College volleyball team earned a hard-fought, four-set road victory over Nebraska Wesleyan University on Tuesday at Snyder Arena, improving to 17-11 overall and 4-3 in American Rivers Conference play.The Knights closed out the match with back-to-back set victories after splitting the opening two sets, led by double-digit kill performances from
Kaylee Koudelka (14) and
Ashlynn Hodges (13). Nebraska Wesleyan fell to 15-10 overall and 3-4 in conference action.
Koudelka led the Knights with 14 kills, surpassing her season average of 7.96, and added 15.5 points, seven digs and two blocks, as Hodges contributed 13 kills on 38 attacks. First-year
Kruiz Ewoldt posted a season-high nine kills at a .300 percent clip.
Aspen Falk finished with 24 assists, five service aces and 12 digs. Her five aces surpassed her season average of 1.3, while she has now recorded at least 24 assists in three consecutive matches.
Peyton Robinson anchored the defensive effort with a team-high 17 digs, exceeding her season average of 16.26, and added two service aces.
HOW IT HAPPENED
Wartburg established an early advantage in the opening set, turning a 1-1 tie into a 7-1 lead behind kills from
Anna Sash and Koudelka, along with several Nebraska Wesleyan attack errors. The Prairie Wolves responded with a run of their own, eventually tying the set at 11-11. The Knights answered with consecutive kills from
Lucy Maassen and back-to-back service aces from Robinson to regain a 15-11 advantage.
Wartburg continued to build separation behind a Sash service ace and another Koudelka kill before Hodges and Maassen closed out the set, 25-17.
Nebraska Wesleyan responded in the second set, building an 8-4 lead behind consecutive service aces and extending the advantage to 12-6. Wartburg worked to close the gap with kills from
McKenzie Becker and
Kruiz Ewoldt, along with a Falk service ace, but the Prairie Wolves maintained control through the remainder of the set. Nebraska Wesleyan used timely kills and blocks to secure a 25-17 win and even the match at one set apiece.
The third set featured a late turnaround from the Knights after Nebraska Wesleyan built a 19-14 advantage. Wartburg responded with three consecutive points, including a Falk service ace and an Ewoldt kill, to pull within two. After the Prairie Wolves regained a four-point cushion, Hodges and Koudelka helped keep the Knights within striking distance. Sash then served four consecutive points, highlighted by kills from Koudelka and Hodges and a block from Koudelka and Becker, to give Wartburg a 23-22 lead. Nebraska Wesleyan briefly moved ahead 24-23, but Koudelka answered with a kill before Hodges recorded back-to-back kills to complete the 26-24 comeback victory.
Wartburg carried its momentum into the fourth set, overcoming an early 12-5 deficit. The Knights gradually worked their way back behind kills from Koudelka, Ewoldt, Becker and
Leah Hayungs. Ewoldt later tied the set at 19-19 before Nebraska Wesleyan regained a two-point advantage. Another Ewoldt kill and three consecutive service aces from Falk shifted the momentum, giving Wartburg a 23-21 lead. Koudelka added a kill to put the Knights within one point of the match before the Prairie Wolves rallied to take a 25-24 advantage. Wartburg responded with three consecutive kills, including two from Hodges and one from Koudelka, to close out the 27-25 set victory and secure the match.
UP NEXT
Wartburg travels to Northfield, Minn., to face the College of St. Scholastica at the St. Olaf University Triangular on Saturday, Nov. 7, at 3 p.m.
NOTABLES
Wartburg recorded nine service aces, surpassing its season average of 7.15, and reached 202 total aces for the season to surpass the 200-ace milestone ... The Knights have recorded at least 50 kills in three consecutive matches ... Sash has recorded three or more total blocks in consecutive matches...Wartburg evens the all-time series against Nebraska Weselyan, 18-18-1...With the win, the Knights have clinched the No. 4 seed in the American Rivers Conference Tournament and will host the quarterfinal round on Tuesday, November 10...
