Carroll shakes off third-game setback to defeat UGF

11-12-10

LEWISTON - Carroll College volleyball coach Maureen Boyle wasn't in the mood for any type of de ja vous.

So when her Saints lost the third set to the University of Great Falls on Friday night during the opening round of the Frontier Conference Tournament, Boyle's message to her team was fairly simple.

"I told them we we've been here before and I don't want to go through it again," she said.

The third-seeded Saints obliged and finished out the match with a strong fourth set to claim a 25-14, 25-21, 23-25, 25-14 victory over the sixth-seeded Argonauts at the Lewis-Clark State College Activity Center.

Just last week, the Saints won the first two sets against the Argos during the final week of league play, but UGF stormed back to win the next three games and claim the match.

"We haven't played well against Great Falls this year so it was nice to come out and prove something different," Boyle said.

The Saints, 21-10 overall, advance to the conference semifinals where they will take on No. 2 seed Rocky Mountain at 1 p.m. The other semifinal has top seed Lewis-Clark State and No. 4 seed Westminster at 11 a.m. The two semifinal winners meet at 7 p.m. for the automatic berth to the NAIA national tournament.

Carroll kept its title hopes alive with strong play at the net and also with its serving.  Carroll hit .252 for the match, compared to .142 for UGF. The Saints also had eight service aces to three for the Argos.

"Our aggressive serving more than anything," Boyle said about the difference in the fourth set. "We have four seniors and they came out and played well and we served well."

The Saints got off to a great start in the match. They led 6-1 and 13-6 before rolling to the win.

The second set was much tighter as neither team could gain an upper hand. The contest was tied at 17 when Carroll went on a 6-3 run for a 23-20 advantage. The Saints then closed it out with the final two points.

The third set also was back and forth. UGF took its biggest lead at 20-17, but the Saints rallied to tie it at 21. The match also was tied at 22 and 23, but the Argos picked up kills from Tosha Nunes and Jessica Muzzall for the win.

Carroll took control early in the fourth set, but UGF rallied to cut the margin to 10-8. The Argos, however, would get no closer because an 8-1 Carroll run put the Saints in control at 22-11.

Sammy Priddy led Carroll with 15 kills, while Markki Otteson and Kristin Telin added 11 each. Maureen Frauenholtz paced four players in double figure digs with 18, while Haylee Otteson had five blocks.

Nunes had a match-high 19 kills, while Kelsey VanUden added 11 for the Argos, who finish the season at 8-19. Kyah Decker added 29 digs.