RIVER FOREST, ILL. - The Concordia University Chicago (CUC) Cougars women's volleyball team faced Marian University on their home court this Saturday. After a long five sets played, the Sabers took the win against the Cougars 3-2.

INSIDE THE BOX:

• Lili Hunt (Greenfield, Ind.) led the game with 16 kills and two blocks.
• Kate Foley (Milwaukee, Wis.) followed right behind Hunt with 11 kills.
• McKayla LeVoy (Kankakee, Ill.) and Kirsten Bockhorst (Union, Mo.) had a tie number with two blocks apiece.
• Rachel Livesay (Medinah, Ill.) added seven kills, three aces, two assists, and 13 digs.
• Eva Fitzgerald (Houston, Texas) led with five aces, 34 assists and 13 digs.
• Janelle White (Morton Grove, Ill.) contributed with an ace, five assists, and 16 digs.

Here's What Happened:

Set One 

At the start of the game, we saw the Cougars take the lead by making the first three points of the set. Early on, Marian had trouble receiving serves and made four reception mistakes, which quickly gave CUC a 10-4 lead. With early kills from Hunt and Foley, the Cougars were able to establish a commanding lead. The Sabres attempted to catch up in the middle of the set following a long run of points, falling by just five points, making the score 16-11. Hunt's last kill sealed the victory for the Cougars in the first set where the score was 25-17.    

Set Two

The Cougars seized the lead once more to begin the second set. With kills from Hunt, Foley, and Bockhorst, things got off to a good start for the Cougars, making them take a lead 9-5. Marian made an early attempt to take the lead with a quick run in the middle of the set, but the Cougars smart ball placements made them still take the lead. The set ended 25-18 with a kill from Foley. The Cougars now led 2-0.

Set Three

The Cougars were able to start out with the first point of the set but the Sabres quickly caught up after that. Exchanging back-to-back points from each other, the Cougars and Sabres were tied at 7-7. The Cougar's hitting faults increased to seven attack errors in the set, which the Sabres took advantage of. There was trouble finding clear passing lanes from the Cougars, causing them to have many hits go out of the box. Marian closed the set out 25-12, making them cut CUC's lead at 2-1.

Set Four

The Cougars were able to win the first point this set, but noticed it was a tough battle from the start. Early point exchanges between the two teams that remained for the entirety of the set made the game tie up at 18-18. However, due to the tough serving and attack errors made by the Cougars,  Marian turned the tide with a 5-0 run. Marian finished the set 25-21 after a difficult battle and now tied the game at two sets apiece. 

Set Five

At the start of our second set, we watched the Cougars take the lead for the final time but unfortunately, it didn't last long. With several CUC enforced errors and serving pressure, Marian quickly jumped out to an 11-7 lead. In the closing points, the Sabres used well-placed tips and well-chosen shots to score on the cougars. Marian ended up winning the set 15-9 and the match 3-2 after a kill at the net.

WHAT'S NEXT:

Next Week, on October 30th, at 7:00 PM, the Cougars will return home to play Aurora University. Coverage for all things CUC women's volleyball can be found at https://www.cucougars.com/coverage