Aug. 31, 2013 - The opening day of the 2013 volleyball season for the Concordia University Chicago Cougars did not go as hoped. The Cougars suffered a pair of three-set losses to the Concordias of Ann Arbor (15-25, 15-25, 13-25) and Wisconsin (17-25, 25-27, 18-25) in the annual Concordia Invitational Volleyball Tournament in Mequon, Wisconsin.

While disappointed in the outcomes, Cougar head coach Alison Shepp stated that "better days are ahead. Our freshmen have unlimited potential, and the senior leadership is excellent. We need to treat today as a learning experience and realize that as we develop each player, we will be a very good team by the end of this season."

In the Ann Arbor match, early runs of 7-0 and 8-0 helped the Cardinals to take control of the first two sets. The third set began with CUC holding the early lead but, with the score at 7-6, Ann Arbor ran off nine straight points to pull away.

The Cougars' attack was led by outside hitters Kristin Allen (Green Valley, IL/Illini Central) and Raven Burns (Shorewood, IL/Minooka Community) with six kills each.

Against the host Falcons, the Cougars played their best ball of the day in sets two and three. The Cougars led for much of set two including a 24-18 advantage. However, CUW pulled off an improbable rally, scoring six consecutive points to tie. Allen's kill put the Cougars back in the lead at 25-24, but the Falcons snatched the victory with the next three points.

Bianca Gordon (Milwaukee, WI/Milwaukee Lutheran) led the Cougars with seven kills (.286) and seven blocks (three solo) against the Falcons. Gordon was named to the all-tournament team as was setter Jenna Boggs (South Beloit, WI/Hononegah) who recorded 24 assists over the two matches.

The Cougars will return to action on Tuesday, Sept. 10 when they open Northern Athletics Collegiate Conference play at Benedictine University in Lisle.