RIVER FOREST, ILL.- The Concordia University Chicago Cougars (CUC) women's volleyball team traveled to Madison, Wisconsin for another Northern Athletics Collegiate Conference (NACC) matchup against Edgewood University Eagles. The Cougars battled throughout the match but ultimately fell to the Eagles, 3-0.
INSIDE THE BOX SCORE:
- Neva Foster (Parker, Colo.) led the Cougars with six kills and two blocks.
- Indiah Day (Merrillville, Ind.) recorded six kills and two aces.
- Harmonie Cooper (Chicago, Ill.) finished with two kills and two blocks.
- Jessalyne Perkins (Chicago, Ill.) contributed with three aces and two blocks.
- Beatriz Goncalves (Belo Horizonte, Brazil) added nine assists and six digs.
- Bethaney Roethel (Westby, Wis.) led with 12 digs, one ace and one assist.
- Rosemary Brenner (Frankenmuth, Mich.) had ten digs for the night.
SET ONE
The Eagles were first to add a point to the scoreboard, followed by an attack error from the Eagles that tied the score at 1-1. Both teams exchanged points until the Cougars capitalized on Eagles errors to take a three-point lead. The Eagles responded with a kill, followed by a Cougar attack error, bringing them within one. After substitutes entered for the Cougars, the Eagles added three consecutive points to take a 8-6 lead. The Cougars continued to battle, exchanging the lead with the Eagles until three consecutive Cougar attack errors and a service ace increased the Eagles' lead to four at 16-12.
Malainna Adler (Fenton, Mo.) tried to gain momentum with a kill, but the Eagles responded with a kill of their own. Both teams continued to exchange points, but the Eagles answered each time, finishing the set with two consecutive kills to take the first set, 25-16.
SET TWO
Continuing their momentum, the Eagles opened the second set with three consecutive points to take a 3-0 lead. Day recorded the Cougars' first point with a kill. The Cougars followed with a service ace and two Eagles attack errors to take a 4-3 lead. The Eagles quickly tied the set following a Cougar attack error, but the Cougars wasted no time reclaiming the lead, 5-4. Both teams continued to exchange the lead until the Eagles scored six consecutive points to take a 12-6 advantage. The Cougars responded with four points, sparked by a service error and a dominant kill from Foster, cutting the deficit to three at 13-10. The Eagles answered with three straight kills, but the Cougars added another point off an Eagles attack error. The Eagles continued to create opportunities and added three more points to extend their lead to 19-11. Following a Cougar timeout, both teams traded points, but the Eagles maintained control and extended their lead to 23-13. Cooper attempted to spark a Cougar comeback with a block and a kill, but the Eagles closed out the set with a kill to take the second set, 25-16.
SET THREE
Both teams opened the third set by exchanging kills, tying the score at 1-1. The next five plays featured a back and forth exchange of kills before the Eagles recorded four consecutive points to take a 9-4 lead. Two Eagles attack errors brought the Cougars within three at 9-6. After a Cougar service error, the Cougars responded by capitalizing on two Eagles mistakes to cut the deficit to two at 10-8. The Eagles began to pull away again, extending their lead to five midway through the set. Foster tried to spark the Cougars with a kill, but a Cougar service error gave the Eagles a 16-10 advantage. Day responded with a kill, followed by three Eagles attack errors and a kill from Perkins, allowing the Cougars to pull within one at 16-15. The Eagles retaliated with six consecutive points to extend their lead to 22-15. Foster added another kill, but the Eagles answered with one of their own. The Eagles closed out the match with three consecutive kills, sweeping the Cougars in three sets with a final score of 25-18.
WHAT'S NEXT
The Cougars will continue their NACC play this Saturday, October 3rd. They will face St.Norbert College on home courts at 12 PM. Coverage for all things CUC women's volleyball can be found at cucougars.com/coverage.
