Concordia-Ann Arbor Comes Back to Defeat Volleyball in Thrilling Five-Set Battle

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DETROIT — Marygrove volleyball couldn’t hold on to an early lead as the visiting Concordia-Ann Arbor Cardinals mounted a comeback, taking sets four and five to edge the Mustangs, 3-2, inside Detroit Jesuit High School on Wednesday (Oct. 28) evening. The Mustangs (4-22, 2-15 WHAC) held a two-sets-to-one lead before the Cardinals’ comeback dropped the Green and Gold to 0-and-3 against their WHAC counterpart this season.

The Cardinals improved to 17-16 overall and 6-11 in conference play after earning their third win in as many tries over Marygrove this season. All three matches went at least four sets with two going the full five frames.

Rachel Staudt (Novi, Mich./Lawrence Tech) was brilliant again for head coach Jamie Baker and the Mustangs. As a focal point of the attack, Staudt amassed a match-high 17 kills as she helped the Mustangs battle the Cardinals for five sets Wednesday evening. The 17-kill tally was five short of Staudt’s program-record-tying 22 kills set on Oct. 17 opposite UNOH.

After dropping the first set, Staudt and the Mustangs stormed back to take the next two frames by identical 25-23 final scores. Leading two-sets-to-one, the Mustangs looked to close out the match in four, but the Cardinals had other plans en route to winning the fourth-set by the largest margin of the night, 25-18.

In set five, the Mustangs and Cardinals were deadlocked at 13-13 before the visitors earned the final two points to squeak out a five-set conference win in Detroit.

The Mustangs had chances – 14 more than their counterpart – as the team attempted 173 attacks to Concordia’s 159 in the back-and-forth match. Despite the additional chances, the Mustangs were outdone in the kills department, 64-57, by the Cardinals as the visitors were sound around the net in key situations.

Mackenzie Schill and Autumn VanKirk led the Cardinals with 14 kills each while the Mustangs’ Ashley Murphy (Southfield, Mich./Clarenceville High School) answered back alongside Staudt with 12 kills to outduel the visitor’s big hitters, 29-28.

Alixandria Pappas (St. Clair Shores, Mich./Lakeview High School), playing in her second-to-last home match as a Mustang, recorded a team-high .385 hitting percentage with seven kills on 13 attempts. Pappas was in on four of the Mustangs’ 16 total blocks in the five-set showdown. Hailey Brandes (Southgate, Mich./Anderson High School) chimed in with eight kills for the Mustangs while Hayley Jury (Plymouth, Mich./Ladywood High School) and Amber Staudt (Novi, Mich./Schoolcraft College) combined for 51 assists.

Amber Kelly (Mt. Morris, Mich./Mt. Morris High School) led the way defensively with 27 digs and was followed by Erica Wilson (Warren, Mich./Macomb CC) with 12 digs of her own.

The Mustangs head for Grand Rapids, Mich. on Saturday (Oct. 31) looking to “treat” themselves to a pair of victories at a WHAC Crossover hosted by Aquinas.

WOMEN’S VOLLEYBALL CONTACT: Tim Johnston | [email protected]/* */ | @tjohnston56
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