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Nikki Gosson
Jed Carlson-Superior Telegram

Volleyball

Spikers go 1-3 at La Crosse tournament

Nikki Gosson


The Yellowjacket volleyball team, after a fast start to the 2012 season, has been mired in a slump of late.  Entering Saturday's play at the UW-La Croose tournament, the Yellowjackets had lost three straight and seven of their last ten matches.  The losing skid hit four as they dropped the first match of the day, but they rebounded to gain a victory in their final match of the tournament against Luther College, finishing 1-3 at La Crosse.

More importantly, the victory gives them 17 on the year, surpassing their win total from a year ago and, with three matches to go, assures the Yellowjackets will finish 2012 above .500.  It will be the first winning volleyball season for the Yellowjackets since they went 21-13 in 2007.

Loras 3, Yellowjackets 1
Box Score

The Yellowjackets opened the tournament by falling to Loras College of Dubuque, Iowa 3-1.

Loras took advantage of a slow Yellowjacket start and claimed the first set 25-13.  The Yellowjackets bounced back to tie the match, winning the second set 25-15.  Loras closed things out, however, winning sets three and four by scores of 25-18 and 25-19, respectively.

Nikki Gosson (Mankato, Minn./Mankato East) paced the Yellowjackets offensively with 12 kills in the opener, the only Yellowjacket to reach double figures in kills.  Gosson also led the team with a strong .353 attack percentage.  Keely Deadrick (Esko, Minn./Esko) had all 28 Yellowjacket assists in the match.  Gosson also had a strong game on defense with three block assists.  As a team, the Yellowjackets had four blocks in the match.  Libero Farrah Wirtz (Esko, Minn./Esko) finished the match with a team best 25 digs.

Hamline 3, Yellowjackets 2
Box Score

Things were a little more interesting in Friday evening's second match, the third time this season the Yellowjackets had to play five sets to decide the winner.  After taking the first set 25-15, the Yellowjackets fell 25-19 in the second.  They turned the tables in the third, regaining the lead with a 25-19 win, but Hamline knotted things up again with a 25-19 win in the fourth set.  The Pipers proved to be a little too strong in the end, claiming the fifth set 15-9 and winning the match 3-2.

Gosson was the only Yellowjacket in double-digit kills once again, leading the way with 14.  For the second match in a row, Kitty Tynen (Stillwater, Minn./Stillwater) was second on the team with nine.  The Yellowjackets, as a team, attacked at 17.1 per-cent clip.  Deadrick accounted for all the set assists in this match as well, finishing with 32. 

Defensively the Yellowjackets were solid, finishing with 93 digs in the five sets.  Wirtz and Emily Cole (Grantsburg, Wis./Grantsburg) tied for the team lead with 17, as five Yellowjackets finished in double figures.  The Yellowjackets also had a pair of blocks, with Gosson and Vikki Vinokur finishing with two block assists apiece.

St. Thomas 3, Yellowjackets 0
Box Score

Things didn't get any easier on Saturday for the Yellowjackets, who opened the day with a match against St. Thomas, who was ranked seventh in the nation by the American Volleyball Coaches Association (AVCA).  The Tommies, the top team in the Minnesota Intercollegiate Athletic Conference, entered the match with a 26-1 record and riding a 21-match winning streak. 

The Yellowjackets hung tough early, but the Tommies proved to be just a little too powerful, as they swept the Yellowjackets 3-0 by scores of 20-25, 14-25 and 19-25.

With a .128 attack percentage for the match, the Yellowjackets finished with just 28 kills on offense, compared to a .324 percentage and 42 kills for St. Thomas.  Vinokur led the way with nine, followed by Jessica Dvergsten (Greenbush, Minn./Greenbush-Middle River) who had eight.  Deadrick had 24 of the 25 assists for the Yellowjackets.  Sarah Petznick (Centuria, Wis./St. Croix Falls) chipped in the other.

On defense Wirtz and Tynen each had eight digs, while Deadrick and Lauren Peterson (Deer River, Minn./Deer River) had seven and six, respectively.

Yellowjackets 3, Luther 1
Box Score

The Yellowjackets finally found their way back into the win column in their final match of the tournament, dowing Luther College 3-1. Set scores were 25-15, 25-14, 19-25 and 25-20.

The match provided the best offensive output of the weekend for the Yellowjackets, who finished with 49 kills and a .315 attack percentage.  Dvergsten and Gosson each had 12 kills, while Vinokur added 11.  The Yellowjackets committed just nine errors offensively for the entire match, one of their lowest totals of the season.  Deadrick had a weekend-best 38 assists, while Petznick and Peterson each had one.

Three players reached double figures in digs, led by Wirtz with 21.  Tynen had 16 while Cole added 10.  The Yellowjackets also had six blocks in the victory, led by Gosson who had one solo block and two block assists.

All-Tournament Team: Gosson was named to the all-tournament team.  In four matches, Gosson had 40 kills on 123 attacks for a percentage of .244.  She also had one ace, 13 digs and six blocks. 

The Yellowjackets (17-13, 0-5 WIAC) will close the 2012 regular season with three conference road matches.  First up is a trip to Menomonie, Wis. where they will take on UW-Stout on Wednesday, October 17.  Game time is 7:00 p.m.
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